


Capturing Maya

by therainbowgay18



Category: Original Work
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Action, Eventual Romance, F/M, Happy Ending?, I haven't opened it in three years, I managed to get it to the word count for me to be one of the winners, It was suppose to be a trilogy, It's unfinished, Maya and Kael's story will not be finished, Most likely won't be continued, NaNoWriMo, Romance, Winner of NaNo 2015, eventually
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-15
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-09-19 23:56:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 47,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17011575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/therainbowgay18/pseuds/therainbowgay18
Summary: Maya Caparelli's father is missing... And so is the bioterrorism weapon he's supposed to be speaking about in Jordan.It's nowhere to be found, and the FBI is just as desperate to find it as much as the men who captured her father are.Paired with Kael, one of the agency's newest recruit, the two will face a lot of danger in the attempt to keep the weapon out of the wrong hands.With enemies at every turn, and very few allies, as well as a budding romance, there's so much to protect.There's so much to lose.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is something I wrote in 2015 for NaNoWriMo.
> 
> This story most likely will never be finished, so enjoy what I got written before it died, basically?

Maya sat back in the chair, her fingers gripping the tabletop with a death grip so tight her fingers were white. Is the Director telling her the honest to God truth about her dad? Is she?

“Dad never made it to Jordan?” She whispered, her gaze locked with the Director.

“I’m afraid so, Maya. No one has seen him since he boarded his flight three days ago to Jordan. The conference director called me to say he never arrived yesterday morning for the Bio terrorism weapons conference.”

She loosened her death grip on the table and sat back, feeling like the floor had gone out from under her. Her dad was always so careful, so precise. He’d never not show up to something without informing someone!

It wasn’t his style.

“I’m afraid I have more bad news. When your father’s luggage was searched, the bio terrorism weapon he was going to speak about was gone. It’s missing, and we are quite concerned as to where it went, but not as much as we are concerned for your father. There has been a lot of unrest in Jordan, _especially_ Jordan, lately. Quite a few agents have been captured near the border and would arrive back in the U.S. either missing a few teeth or in a coffin. Maya, we are doing everything in our power to find your father. The Israeli government is working with us to help locate him. I suggest you go home for today, since you’ve had quite a shock, and rest. I’ve put a security detail on you, one of my best from the early recruitment program.”

Maya snapped to attention at the mention of even missing school. She could not miss school! She had a major English test in three days, a book report due in two weeks, and soccer practice after school.

“Director, I can’t miss school! I have so much to-“

“Maya Caparelli, _one missed day_ will not kill you. I order you to go home and rest, Ms. Caparelli. _Is that understand?_ ”

“Yes, ma’am.” She muttered.

With the matter settled, the Director gently patted Maya’s shoulder as she passed, trying to reassure her that they would find her father at any cost.

Maya certainly didn’t feel reassured, not at all.

With a sigh, she grabbed her messenger bag and slide it over her shoulder. Her jeans slide down uncomfortably, and she paused for a moment to bring them up and tighten them with the belt. She’d told her dad that the jeans were too big, but he didn’t listen. Not that he ever did. He was constantly on his phone.

Tears welled up in her eyes and she wiped them away quickly, before anyone saw. How could she be upset with him when he was missing? He could be dead. And she couldn’t take another family death.

Her mother’s had already been too much on her. She couldn’t deal with her dad’s death, too.

Maya steeled herself, taking a deep breath, and continued down the stairs. The Tampa FBI office wasn’t as big of the Boston FBI office, which her dad visited once when it was discovered that two cases had the same killer across their jurisdictions. The air was cranked up, cooling down the building. When she’d left for school this morning, it had been 85 degrees. Now, at the height of the day, it was 97 degrees with a feel like of 104 degrees.

Agents throughout the office were talking, either to their partner or to the people on the phone. Some were wearing suits, and others had suits on, but the jacket was off and their ties were loosen or, for the female agents, the top few buttons of their shirts were undone. It was hot.

Maya just wanted to go home and lay on her bed with the air going in a tank top and shorts.

She met Director Banks in the elevator, where she was fanning herself as the doors closed. Neither of the ladies spoke, with Maya scrolling through Facebook like her dad missing was no big deal.

It was a big deal, though. A very big deal, in regards to Maya, anyway.

The elevator clanked to a stop in the basement and the doors opened with a thud. A black, unmarked van was waiting for them, or, on a more specific note, waiting for Maya to return her home.

Director Banks led her to the van and opened the door. Her hand squeezed her shoulder once before Maya climbed into the van. The Director had a wary look on her face.

“Your security detail will be waiting for you at your house. He will be guarding you day and night, so he’s right there in anything happens or you just need the comfort of knowing he is there.”

“Yes, Ma’am. Thank you for all this.”

“Dear, it’s no problem. We’re family, after all.”

Maya gave a small smile that she wasn’t feeling anyway, as the door shut with an audible click. The van shifted as the driver and passenger side doors opened and the two agent escorting her, one male, and the other female, climbed in. The doors shut behind them with a slam, and Maya sat back in her seat, her gaze out the window. The woman turned the key in the ignition and the van started with a hearty hum.

The agents conversed over a map for a minute, and then turned to pull out of the office building. Maya watched the cars and roads go by a half hour after they’d left, until her eyes grew heavy and she fell asleep with her chin cusped in her hand.

Her dreams were a mix of things-her dad, the weapon, missing school, Jordan floating around her brain again and again, who the security detail waiting for her was, and so many other things. Her mother’s death was the predominant information of her dreams.

The dream became a nightmare, and she awoke with a gasp, sweat rolling down her neck. Every though it was hot, Maya was severely cold.

A shiver went through her and Maya distinctly remembered the loud crack of bone, as her mother’s bones broke. She shook her head, quickly, to dispel the dream. She couldn’t think of her mother’s death. It hurt too much still.

The van turned the corner onto Maya’s street, and she let out a low sigh of relief. The faster she got into the sanctuary that is her room, the better Maya would feel. She had to be quick, before the feelings she kept locked so tight inside was see by these _strangers_.

The van door opened, and Maya pushed her way out, rubbing her temple to be rid of the dream. Most people barely or never remembered their dreams. Maya always does. She doesn’t want to remember the dreams.

Not all of them are pretty.

Maya pushed the gate open and barely made it a foot before she ran into a solid wall of muscle. Scowling, she turned her gaze up. She’d had enough for one day.

“Watch it!” She snapped, her teeth bared.

The boy cocked a pierced eyebrow, and then shook his head. Maya could only assume this was her security detail, and brushed past him.

“My name is Maya Caparelli. I am seventeen, and I am usually alone, so knock before entering any room, but _especially mine_. I have dinner around 5:30, maybe later if I have a late soccer practice. I do my homework after dinner, and then I go to bed. Any questions?”

“No, no questions.” He said, leaning against the rusted metal fence that framed her yard.

“Good. I’ll be in my room if you need something.”

Maya unlocked the house and took the stairs two at a time. Her room was right there on the left, and she pushed the door open, shutting it behind her quickly. Maya kicked her shoes off and dropped her bag on her bed next to her, collapsing into her queen black satin bed.

A rattling deep breath slipped from her mouth as she fought to calm herself after her nightmare in the car over here. This is the reason Maya tried not to think of her mother. When she thought of her, it resulted in a nightmare of some caliber. In her room, she felt safe, collected, and calm. It was her safe place.

Maya’s room faced the front yard, and had been her room since she was six years old. Maya shuddered to think that she’d been into princesses and happily ever after then. Her walls were painted a silver color with a red band that went around the room. A painting easel and her paints sat by the window, waiting for her to come paint something. Her desk was to the right of the easel, papers and books making a completely organized mess, in Maya’s mind, anyway. A purple bean bag chair sat in front of the TV, a game controller in the folds of the chair. She had a single bookshelf with books she’d gotten as gifts or brought for herself. And a side table with a picture of her with her friends Ally and Delia. She also had a walk in closet.

Maya laid on her bed until she could sit up and not want to cry again. With a renewed determination, Maya got up from her bed and walked over to her closet, opening the doors to her style heaven.

Shelley was holding a party tomorrow, and Maya had an outfit picked out, but was still trying to decide what purse to match with it. Maya thinking about this party kept her mind off her father and what became of him.

She reached for her white Chanel purse, and pulled it down. The bag weighed a ton, and Maya grunted with the effort. She felt her weight shift, and the floor disappeared beneath her.

Maya landed with a crash, her purse thudding to the ground beside her. Groaning, she sat up slowly and checked herself for any injuries. After determining that she’d come out unscathed, Maya grabbed the purse handles and yanked it towards her.

“What the hell?”

Maya opened the purse wider and pulled out something very big, very heavy, and very _shouldn’t_ be here. She laid the device in her lap, her jaw slack.

She’d seen the design before, when her dad had left them on his desk in his office downstairs. Oh, she knew exactly what this was.

Without a single hesitation, Maya slide it off her lap gently and ran to the window, stumbling wildly. She undid the latch and lifted it open, poking her head out.

“You! Whatever your name is, get up here now! We’ve a got problem!”

He gave her a look and warily folded the corner of his book, closing it and stuffing it into the bag at his side. Maya huffed at the look he gave her and turned away from the window.

“My name is Kael, if you’re going to insist on calling me constantly.” He said loudly as he ascended the stairs.

Maya stood with the weapon in her hands as gently as possible. Kael sucked in a deep breath, a whistle of shock leaving his mouth.

“Is that what I think it is?”

“It is. I found it in my Chanel purse.  Someone, and I’m thinking my dad, hide it away in there. But why?”

Kael went into her closet and picked the purse off the floor, feeling into it, to see if there was anything to tell why the bio-terrorist weapon her dad was going to speak about was here in Tampa, in Maya’s Chanel purse of all places.

“Maya, there’s a false pocket in here.”

“What?”

Maya sat the weapon down and grabbed her purse open, feeling around inside. He was right. There was a false pocket in here. Kael offered her a pocket knife, and Maya slit it open neatly.

She fished a folded piece of paper out of the false, and unfolded it. Her father’s neat scrawl greeted her, and so she begin to read.

“Maya, my darling, darling girl. I know it won’t be too long after I’ve written this that your world will quickly crash. I did this to hopefully protect the world so you may continue to enjoy it in that special way of yours. I knew that they would come after me once I was in their home turf, alone with no gun or protection. Give this to Director Banks immediately. She’ll take it and make sure no one can get their hands on it. Be safe, my daughter.”

Maya’s legs gave out from under her and she collapsed to the floor. Her hands shook as tears blurred the words before her. Her head hung as she tried to contain her anger.

“That idiot! How could he do this?! He _knew_ they were going to come after him, and he did this anyway! Why, dad? Why did you risk your life like this? You’re such a moron!”

Maya shook from head to toe. She was so angry at him for doing this! Some way to show her how much he loved and cared for him. It won’t do much good if he’s dead!

“I’m going to call the director about this. She may know what to do. I’ll let you know what she says when I’m done.”

Maya didn’t answer him, and let her arms slacken as the anger ebbed away. Now that she’d gotten the anger out of her system, a new emotion arose-fear.

Someone in Jordan had been dead set on getting this bio-terrorism weapon, so much that they kidnapped her dad. Who’s to say that they might not come after her?

Kael was speaking rapidly into the phone outside her room, and Maya could vaguely see him outside of her room through the crack in her door, pacing back and forth, motioning wildly with his hands.

He stopped pacing, ran his fingers through his jet black hair and closed the phone with a snap. He let out a sigh and opened her door once more, leaning against the door frame.

“Director is sending someone to come get it from us. They’ll be here in an hour. They’re going to go through your dad’s emails and see if there’s an email somewhere that’ll point out when he was contacted by whoever wanted the weapon so badly that he hid it here. They’ll be checking his phone records, too. Whoever wanted the weapon so bad _had_ to have contacted him somehow.”

She nodded, and folded the note up again, sticking it in the pocket of her jeans. Her head hurt, from the crying, from thinking too much, and a headache was forming.

“I don’t know what we’ll do for dinner. I usually have a cook here, but I gave her the night off.”

Kael sat down in front of her, leaning back on his hands. Maya regarded him warily, wondering if he’d call her stupid for giving the cook the night off.

“Do you want to just order sushi?”

She wasn’t expecting that response from him, but she grinned and leaned forward towards him. He seemed to know what she liked without having to ask, unless the FBI had a file on her, which didn’t sit well with her. Or the idea of it didn’t anyway.

“There’s a place called Takara Sushi & Sake Lounge on Bruce B Downs Boulevard. They have the best sushi ever. And we can order online, so no calling in and having to regard the menu at the same time.”

He chuckled, and climbed to his feet, offering his hand to her. Maya took it gladly, and Kael pulled her to her feet. She brushed off her pants.

“Well, let’s go order now, and put a delivery time for… 6:45. Enough time to get the bio weapon out of here and let them clear out before the delivery man arrives.”

She nodded, and grabbed her wallet off the desk as they walked out. The computer was in her father’s office, which he leaves unlocked for when Maya was alone and wanted to order something to eat.

She booted the computer up and typed the password in quickly, bringing up Google chrome and clicking the webpage bookmarked.

“I’ll put my order in first. Let’s see… I definitely want a Spicy Tuna Bowl and some Ika Sansai. Do you want to get some pork pot stickers and crab Rangoon?”

“Sure.”

“Okay. There’s that. What would you like?”

Kael leaned over, and Maya got a whiff of his cologne. It didn’t have too strong of a presence, but still smelled wonderful to anyone who caught a whiff. Maya shook her head slightly, wondering where her mind was going today.

“I’ll take some Dynamite Mussels and an Avocado & tofu salad.”

She nodded and added the two items to the order, then proceeded to the checkout. After placing her address and card information, she pressed pay. The screen displayed that she’d get a confirmation email, and then signed out and closed the internet. She then shut the laptop.

“Alright, I got the confirmation email. Have you heard anything from the guys picking up the weapon?”

“Yes, I did. AJ and two other agents will be here in twenty minutes. The weapon will be safe then, and we’ll have sushi to celebrate the weapon being found.”

“Right.”

Now there was the case of finding her father…

Maya flicked the TV on in the living room, and changed the channel to a random channel, and sat back to watch some cooking challenge show as they waited for the agents and their dinner.

The doorbell rang fifteen minutes later, and Kael went to answer it. There was a muted conversation and then Kael returned back to the living room. Maya looked up at him as he spoke.

“The agents are here. Are you okay with them going upstairs to your room and retrieving the weapon?”

“Yeah, go ahead.”

Kael disappeared back down the hall, and muted conversation became louder as the four agents came into the living room. One of them caught Maya’s gaze before she returned to the TV, completely uninterested in the cocky smirk that formed on his lips.

“Dude, you didn’t tell me this girl was hot. You need to tap that, seriously.”

Maya flushed in anger, but smirked when there was a loud whack and a grunt of pain. The footsteps carried upstairs, along with Kael’s voice.

“She’s the daughter of one of our agents. I think, if he was here, he wouldn’t take too lightly to you talking about his child that way. I suggest you shut it, as I rank higher than you and can report you very easily to the Director.”

“Alright, alright, I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.”

The voices retreated upstairs, and Maya returned back to the show on the TV, not really focusing on it. Kael could say what he liked about her dad, but, good or bad, it doesn’t make all of them true. Until her mother’s death, her father didn’t know anything about his child.

The boys’ voices returned downstairs once more. AJ had the bioweapon in his hands, wrapped in a light blue towel. She assumed it was one of theirs, as she didn’t own one of those.

Kael followed them to the door, and let them out the door. It was peaceful once they were gone. The quiet didn’t last long, for the doorbell rang again, and this time it was the sushi delivery man. Maya gave Kael fifteen dollars for a tip and went to the kitchen to get plates.

The two ate in silence, watching the TV. Kael offered to wash the dishes, and Maya set the couch up for him.

“I figured you’d like to sleep here tonight. We also have a guest room, if you want that.”

“This is fine. You go to sleep. Yell if you need anything.”

Maya nodded and proceeded upstairs, turning to look at him one more time as he turned the TV volume down and got settled on the couch. Maya smiled slightly, and continued to her room.

She changed into a tank top and shorts, and went to sleep instantly with the cool breeze from her window a welcome in the stifling heat of the day.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *DISCONTINUED*
> 
> *Just posting what I've got here*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> D  
> I  
> S  
> C  
> O  
> N  
> T  
> I  
> N  
> U  
> E  
> D

**_“Kael, wait-“_ **

**_His mouth pressed against hers, and she tried to pull away. Why was he kissing her? What in the world is going on?! Where in the world are they?_ **

**_As confused as she was, Maya took his hair in her hands, between her fingers and leaned into the kiss. His hands pushed her shirt up, and his left hand slipped under._ **

**_‘Oh, is he going to-‘_ **

With a loud gasp, Maya jerked up in bed, her eyes wide. She looked around slowly, and found that Kael wasn’t there at all. Maya breathed out a sign of relief, and then buried her face in her arms.

_That was the craziest dream I’ve ever had. Why did dream of Kael kissing me?_

That is a question that’ll have to be answer another time. At the moment, her throat was parched. Maya flung the blanket off and walked to the bathroom, turning the light on. She picked the glass up and filled it with water from the tap. Maya lifted the glass to her lips and gulped down some water, soothing her throat. She peeked over the glass as she pulled it away, and noticed the pair of dark eyes behind her for the first time.

The glass shattered on the floor as Maya was shoved against the counter, one hand on her throat and the other holding a knife to it. She struggled against him, and he dug the blade of the knife against her throat.

“You struggle more, and I slit your throat.”

Maya nodded slightly, noting his broken English. Whoever this man was, he was not from America, and English was not his first language. But as what he wanted with her, that was a mystery.

“Where is weapon?”

“Weapon?”

“The bio weapon, you insolent!”

_Of course_. He was looking for the bio-terrorism weapon, which meant he was part of the group of men that had kidnapped her father. She had to play along with him, and get to Kael, get his attention.

“It’s in my closet. Closet, do you understand that? I’ll show you where it is.”

He considered this for a moment and turned her around, leading her out of the bathroom, the knife pressed into her back. She swallowed but kept pace with him as she led him to her closet.

“It’s up there, on the shelf behind those boxes.”

The man pushed her away, and began shoving some of the boxes out of the way. She had a few minutes before he realizes that she tricked him. Maya picked up a chair, and crept up behind him. He was completely oblivious, her complete attention on finding the weapon.

Maya raised it high above her head and slammed it down on his head. He crumpled to the floor, his eyes rolling into the back of his head. She dropped the chair and took for the hallway.

“Kael! KAEL! Wake up, there’s a fucking intruder!”

As she took the steps down to the first floor, she heard a lot of swearing in Arabic. Kael sat up, rubbing his eyes. She spun around the edge of the stairs, heading straight for Kael.

“There’s a damn intruder! _Where’s your weapon_?”

Kael got up quickly and pulled the gun from under the pillow he’d been laying on only seconds before. He turned off the safety and checked his rounds, then grabbed her by her arm and pulled Maya behind him.

Footsteps thundered down the stairs, and Maya screamed as a bullet whizzed past her head, barely inches from her left ear. Kael raised the gun eye level and shot the man straight in the head. She collapsed as her legs shook like Jell-O.

“Are you alright, Maya? Did he hurt you in any way?”

Her fingers touched her throat, where he’d cut her a little bit as a threat if she kept struggling against him. Maya realized that she came so close to him cutting her jugular.

“He cut my throat a little. Kael, I thought he was going to kill me. I thought I was going to die.”

A tear rolled down her cheek, and then another, and another until she was sobbing into his shoulder, shaking like a leaf. She’d never been so terrified in her life.

“I left my window open, Kael. That must have been how he got in tonight. I left my goddamn window open and that almost cost me my goddamn life!”

He patted her head gently, almost comforting her, in a way. Maya pulled away from him, embarrassed, and wiped her nose and eyes. His shirt was wet from her tears.

“Sorry…”

“Eh, it’s fine. But there are bigger problems to deal with now then my shirt.”

Kael stood and walked over to the guy, kicking him over onto his back. He searched the pockets and pulled out a wallet & a passport. Maya watched him do this, and Kael then checked for a walkie-talkie on him.

“His name is Abdul Jarabiha and he just flew in from Iran yesterday afternoon. There’s this, too, in his wallet.”

Kael pulled out a folded piece of paper and unfolded it. Maya gasped, covering her mouth as a picture of her stared back in black and white.

“It’s a flyer instructing Abdul here what you looked like, where you go to school, where you live, and so on. And this insignia here, in the top right corner? That’s the insignia of the Radical Group for Israel, the same people who kidnapped your father.”

Kael refolded the paper and shoved it back into the wallet, then proceeded to remove his shirt. Maya turned bright red, and stumbled over her words.

“W-What are you doing?!”

“You’re bleeding, Maya, remember? Use my shirt to staunch the flow until we get to a hospital.”

He chucked it at her and she caught it. Maya waded it up and pressed it against her throat. She’d completely forgotten about her throat being cut.

Kael stood and walked over to her, offering his hand again. She took it, and he pulled her up. He grabbed his phone, and pressed some keys, before pressing the phone.

“Director? We have a problem. Maya was just attacked. Yes, it was by the same group who kidnapped her father. She’s got a slight cut on her throat. We’re leaving for the hospital now. Okay, see you there.”

Kael hung up and shoved the phone into his back pocket. Maya shifted her hand slightly, trying to stretch her hand as the uncomfortable ache settled in.

“I’m going to get your clothes and shut that damn window. Stay right here. Don’t answer the phone or the door. Do you understand me, Maya? This is dangerous territory we are stepping into, and a whole new ball game.”

“Okay, okay. I get it, Kael. I think, after nearly having my throat slit, I understand that this is way more dangerous than I can even began to believe. Just, be quick about it, please. I don’t want to be alone for long.”

Kael nodded and went upstairs to her room, leaving Maya leaning on the arm of the couch. Maya couldn’t believe how quickly things had taken a turn from yesterday morning to this morning. Her father was missing, she’d found the bio-weapon that hadn’t been found with her father’s van, and she’d been attacked in the span of twenty four hours.

“Come on.”

Kael’s voice was a welcomed sound, and Maya gladly followed after him like a lost puppy. Kael unlocked the van on the street, and handed Maya her clothes before walking over to the driver’s side. He climbed in and started the van while Maya successfully got into the car and buckled.

The car ride over was a quiet one, neither of them speaking and both lost in their thoughts. The nearest hospital was only five minutes away, so they arrived there quickly. Director Banks was waiting in the lobby of the hospital when they’d arrived.

“Maya, dear, are you alright? I was so worried when Kael called me in the middle of night and told me you’d been attacked!”

“It’s just a cut. I’m fine, Ma’am, really.”

A nurse came up to them and took Maya away to get her throat checked out by a doctor. Kael and the Director watched her go, and then took a seat.

“I can’t believe this happened under my watch. If it wasn’t for her quick thinking, she’d possibly be dead now and I’d never know until I went to check on her the next morning.”

“Kael, it’s okay. She’s alive, and not dead. You did very well for someone who had no absolute backup in this kind of situation. I am quite proud of how you handled it.”

Kael chuckled and leaned back, lacing his fingers behind his head. Director Banks had a lot of faith in him, even if he didn’t. But she was that way for a reason. Until someone proved their worth or didn’t, she had a lot of faith in them.

“What are we going to do about Maya? She can’t stay there, not when the RGI knows where she lives and goes to school and everything else about her. She could get hurt, or someone else could.”

“I think we only have one option for a case like this. She might not like it though.”

Kael looked up at the Director and let out a wary sigh. He knew what she meant, and Maya definitely wouldn’t like it one bit, once he told her.

Maya squirmed as her neck itched under the bandage. If having stitched was bad, this really took the damn cake. She was going to walk around like she has a spinal injury until the wound heals and the stitches can be removed.

“You look ridiculous.”

Maya looked to the door and grimaced at Kael in annoyance. He chuckled and took a seat in the chair next to her bed.

“Thanks, I know I do.”

“Listen, Maya, we’re going to go back to the house and I’m going to help you pack. The Director decided that it’d be too dangerous for you to live here in Tampa. So, you and I are going to a safe house under the pretense that your aunt is ill. I know you may not like this, but it’s for your safety.”

“At the moment, I’d rather be anywhere but here, Kael. When do we leave?”

“Once you’ve been released by the doctor. I’ve got AJ coming with a luggage bag full of clothes to get you through until this matter is dealt with.”

Maya nodded and leaned back against the pillow, her hair billowing out against the stark white. Her throat hurt something awful, and it’d be weeks before the stitches could come out. She wasn’t even sure they’d be able to go into a hospital to get the stitches removed.

The doctor came through, and spoke with Kael, giving him some antibiotics and a package to replace her bandage until the stitches came out. He left then to get the discharge papers, and Kael stuffed the medical things into his bag that he’d brought with him.

“I just thought of this, but what cover story did you use when they asked what happened?”

“I told them that I’d been in the middle of cutting your hair when I nicked your throat with the scissors. They took the lie easily enough.”

Maya couldn’t believe what idiots they were. Who believed that her throat was cut in a hair cutting accident? Even she had problems believing it!

“I have the discharge papers, Mr. Caparelli.”

_Mr. Caparelli?_

Maya gave Kael a look as he signed the papers. He shrugged, and continued signing in all the places marked, and then gave the papers back to the doctor.

“Thank you, sir. You’re free to take your sister home now.”

_Sister?_

“Care to explain, Kael?” She muttered, climbing out of the bed.

“They wouldn’t let anyone in unless they were family. The Director didn’t want to flash our badges around and attract attention, so I lied and said I was your brother. It was a spur of the moment thinking, but that thinking got me in there with you.”

Maya nodded. That explained that, at least. She really couldn’t _imagine_ Kael as her brother. It’d be too weird, and after the dream last night, it definitely would be.

She blushed and looked down, glad that Kael was in front of her, so he could not see the blush on her cheeks. He’d surely ask then, and she couldn’t say it. She definitely wouldn’t be able to.

“Maya!”

Kael’s urgent voice yanked her from her thoughts, and suddenly she was pressed into his chest, both hands on her back. Maya turned bright red, and felt like she was going to die.

“You idiot. You almost walked into traffic and got hit! Do you have a death wish or something?”

Maya pushed away from him, hiding her face in embarrassment. She hadn’t meant to walk into traffic. And now she was even redder in the face than before.

“Hey, you got a fever or something? Why are you so red?”

Maya backed away as his hand tried to touch her forehead. Kael gave her this look, and she forced a smile.

“I’m fine, Kael. No fever at all! Let’s just go, okay? Where’s AJ?”

“He’s over there.”

AJ waved from beside a black ’67 Chevy Impala, and Maya recognized he suitcase standing upright next to him. A duffle bag sat on top that she didn’t recognized but assumed it was Kael’s, and AJ shook a pair of keys in his hand. Kael and Maya walked across the lot and met AJ at the car.

“Here’s the keys for the Impala. Bring it back in one piece, please, Kael? The boys and I in the mechanic shop spent a lot of time and money, in my case.”

“I’ll try, AJ, and thanks for bringing it by.”

“It’s no problem. Besides, Caparelli over here is obviously in danger, right? No point in putting her in more danger than she already is.”

Kael nodded and then popped the trunk. AJ placed Maya’s bag in the trunk and shut it. Kael tossed his duffle bag into the back seat, and opened the passenger door.

“C’mon. It’s a long way to the safe house. Let’s try and get there before dawn.”

Maya climbed into the seat, and Kael shut the door, then went back to AJ. The two conversed quietly for a minute, and AJ handed Kael something small and black, pressing it tightly into his palm. Kael shoved the object into his back pocket and headed around the front for the driver’s side seat.

“Call if you run into a problem, Kael!”

“I will, you blubbering moron. Now go home. I’ll call when we arrive there.”

AJ nodded and then climbed into the van they’d taken to the hospital, and he pulled out, heading back to Tampa. Kael started the car and pulled out into the turn lane, and turned into traffic.

“Where is this safe house exactly, Kael?”

“It’s in Georgia, in Savannah to be exact. We try to keep a few safe houses here since we’re so close to our FBI headquarters. We’ll be there hopefully before dawn, since sleeping in the car isn’t exactly comfortable.”

“What was that thing AJ gave you?”

“A burner phone. I’ve got one already, but I was due for a new burner on Friday, so I can break the old on tomorrow. Now, try and rest. It’ll be a while and chatting with me has proven to not be very stimulating.”

Maya yawned and leaned the seat back, curling up on her side towards him. Did Kael really think he was boring? She liked their conversations so far, especially involving sushi.

“I don’t think you’re boring… Quite the opposite, honestly…” She muttered.

Kael didn’t say anything and she drifted off, falling asleep swiftly. Kael peeked to make sure she was asleep, and then sighed, taking a hand off the wheel to run his fingers through his hair.

“You really don’t remember me, after all…”

Kael just shook his head and kept on driving into the night, his mind on getting them to the safe house before dawn. This was just a mission. It didn’t matter if she remembered him or not.

“Maya… Maya, wake up.”

She groaned and rolled over, pushing the hand shaking her shoulder away. Maya was not a morning person. And whoever was trying to wake her was in for a swift punch to the face.

“Maya, we’re at the safe house. Don’t you want a soft bed to lay on instead of a leather seat?”

The mention of a bed was all it took to get her up. Maya sat up and rubbed her eyes, pinching her cheeks to wake herself up a little, enough to get into the house and a bed and go back to sleep.

“C’mon, I popped the trunk already. We can’t stay out here too long. Someone will see us.”

Maya opened the door and climbed out, stumbling slightly to the trunk. Kael handed her the suitcase, and shut the trunk. The car beeped once as he pressed the lock button. Maya noticed that he had his duffle bag already.

He led her up to the door and pulled his keys out, sorting through the keys to a small silver one. He shoved it into the lock and turned it slowly, earning a click and the knob going slack.

“It’s too hard to just slide in, and the key gets stuck if you turn it too quickly. We’ve lost quite a few keys because people got hasty.”

Maya nodded, leaning against the door, trying not to nod off. If regard to everything that happened tonight, it didn’t surprise her that she was tired. She’d been attacked and almost killed tonight.

“Just point the room with the bed out to me.”

“It’s upstairs and to the right. It’s the very first door.”

“Okay, thanks, Kael. Sleep well.”

“You, too.”

Maya climbed up the stairs and warily pushed open the door to the right. With a yawn, she shut the door, dropped her suitcase. She kicked her shoes off, stripped to her underwear and shirt and face-planted on the bed.

Maya was out in minutes, and had no intentions to wake up again anytime soon.

Kael dropped his duffle bag on the floor next to the couch, and pulled out his burner, speed dialing the Director and AJ into a conference call.

“We’ve arrived at the safe house. Maya is upstairs asleep in bed. I checked the house already from the outside. All the windows are secure, and the doors, too.”

“We’ve already informed the school that Maya would be out for the next month due to her aunt’s illness. Hopefully we’ll be able to end this and find her father before that month is up.”

“I’m sure we will. In the meantime, she’s going to have a vacation.”

“Only with a twenty-four-seven body guard on her tail.”

AJ finally spoke, and Kael rolled his eyes. He made stupid jokes at the worst time. It was one of the irritating things he hated about Kael.

“Do you have enough ammo? I could send more if you need it.”

“I’ll count my ammo in the morning. It’s late and I need sleep. I’m no good if I’m tired, right?”

“Indeed. Sleep well, Kael. We will speak tomorrow.”

“Will do.”

Kael shut his phone and found a pillow and blanket in the hall, setting up the couch for the night. He crashed down on it and fell asleep immediately, snoring softly.

Maya shifted as sunlight streamed through the window and into her eyes. She groaned and placed her pillow on top of her head. What time is it, anyway?

“Get up, Maya.”

Kael stood in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe. Maya groaned again and sat up wearily. She rubbed her eyes and fell back onto her pillow.

“Oh, come on. Get up, seriously. You need to eat.”

“I don’t want to.”

Kael scowled, and walked across the room, flung the blanket off, and hauled her over his shoulder. Maya jerked awake and hit his back. Kael shifted her and continued out of the room, heading down the stairs.

“You bastard! Put me down this instant! Who said you could pick me up like a child?!”

“I did, since you are acting like a child.”

“God, what do they teach you at the academy?!”

Kael chuckled and placed her down in the chair next to the table. She scowled, and peeked at the plate. It smelled good, and looked good, too. There was toast, an omelet, sausage, and a muffin on the plate.

“Did you make all this?”

“Yeah. I figured I’d put my culinary skills to use. And that’s one of the things they teach us at the academy, since we are usually on solo missions a good nine out of ten times.”

She looked back to him and tilted her head. He sounded almost _lonely_ , if she had to listen closely. Maya kind of understand that feeling. Sure, she had her friends, but with her dad gone so much, she felt lonely a lot of the time.

“It sounds lonely, Kael. Don’t you have anyone else to cook for?”

He shook his head.

“No, I don’t. It’s just me, usually. On occasion, it’s me and one other, but they usually just want to order in, so I don’t put my culinary training to use. I made you a ham and cheese omelet, since I wasn’t sure what you liked and ham and cheese is my standard.”

“I like ham and cheese. It’s my favorite, actually.”

Kale took the seat across from her, and began into his meal. Maya took that as he was done speaking for now, and dug into her meal, as well. She blew on the warm omelet and popped the piece into her mouth.

_Mmmm… This is really good! Kael should cook more._

“Kael?”

“Hmmm?”

“I was, um, wondering if you’d decided on what to do for lunch? This is really good and I’d like it if you made lunch, too. And maybe dinner?”

Maya watched him look down, his hand covering his mouth. She could almost swear that he was blushing. Maya turned red, too, and covered her face.

“God, now I feel embarrassed by saying all that.”

“To answer your questions, since you want me to, I’ll make lunch and dinner, too.”

Maya peeked at him from under her hands and then sat back in her seat, smiling. She picked up her toast and took a bite, chewing.

“Thanks, Kael, for making breakfast and eating with me. I eat alone usually, since dad is away a lot. I kind of understand how lonely it can be sometimes, you know?”

Kael nodded, and stabbed a sausage link with his fork, and shoved it into his mouth.

“Well, I’m glad that I have someone besides myself to cook for.”

He smiled across the table at her, and Maya had a weird sense of Deja vu for a minute, like she’d seen that smile before. When she was a child, perhaps? Regardless, she felt her heart do a drumbeat in her chest when he smiled at her.

“Well, I can cross one accomplishment off my list.”

“And that would be what?”

“I got you to smile. I was kind of wondering, in the back of my mind, why you never smiled. I’ve only known you twenty-four hours, and I’ve noticed that you frown more than you smile.”

“Well, congrats. Nice job.”

Maya looked down at her food and bit her lip, beaming. Getting a compliment like that felt nice coming from Kael. It made her warm inside. She picked her fork back up and speared a sausage link, and shoved it into her mouth, too.

They continued breakfast in silence, and Maya finished her plate, all but licking it clean. Kael was a great cook, and it made her sad that so few people knew it.

“I’ll take care of the dishes.”

“Okay, I’ll go shave. Let me know when you’re done so I can get in the shower. And then we’re checking your bandage. It might need changing.”

“Got it… _boss_.”

Kael rolled his eyes, chuckling, and headed upstairs, rubbing his eyes and yawning. Maya gathered the plates and walked into the kitchen. There was no dishwasher, so she turned the water on and found some soap.

Maya put the dishes away, and walked over to the stairs, leaning around them.

“Kael, I’m all done with the dishes! You can get in the shower now.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

Maya turned around from the stairs and walked over to the couch, taking a seat and turning the TV on. The news was playing, but that was boring, so she changed it to the cooking channel. Some guy with spiky, bleach blonde hair was at a restaurant in Michigan making some kind of pancake or another with chopped nuts in the middle of it and covered in syrup.

Maya tried to stay awake, and nodded off on the couch, using her arm as a pillow. It was better to be asleep on occasion. At least her dreams were nicer than her reality.

Kael came downstairs, towel drying his hair and dressed in a loose shirt and sweatpants. Maya was asleep on the couch, using her arm as a pillow.

Kael tossed the towel into the dirty laundry and took a seat. He lifted Maya off her arm and onto a pillow in his lap. He figured Maya would be more comfortable in his lap then asleep on her arm.

“I wished you’d remember me…” He whispered, his fingers brushing over her hair lightly.

He could hardly believe she was seventeen years old now. When he’d met her, she’d be more girly. But he liked her like this now. The past didn’t matter, not now.

What mattered most what keeping her safe until they catch the men who’d kidnapped her father and tried to kill her last night.

“I’ll protect you. Just like I used to. I won’t let anyone hurt you. I promise.”

His fingers pushed her hair back and tucked it behind her ear. With a yawn, he closed his eyes and fell asleep, sleeping soundly with Maya asleep in his lap.

Maya dreamed of a memory, one that she’d seem to have locked away in her memories-like the ones of her mother, long before her death.

_“Maya, do you want to play with the Legos with me?”_

_“Sure!”_

_Little Maya sat down with a boy around her age, maybe a month or so older. He dumped the Legos, and together they dug for pieces and built a small castle._

_“Can I be the princess?”_

_“Of course, Maya! You’re a princess, after all!”_

_The boy turned to smile at her, and Maya felt her breath catch. This boy remind her of someone she knows…_

Maya gasped and sat up quickly. Kael was asleep, his head lolled back on the couch. She took a deep breath and ran her fingers through her hair.

That smile…

It reminded her a lot of Kael’s smile. Could the boy and Kael be related? Maybe they’re siblings? She groaned and sunk down into the couch.

She had no idea who the boy was. Why did this memory surface now, of all times? It wasn’t important for her to try and remember, was it?

Or maybe it was. Maya had no idea, but that smile was going to drive her mad for days and weeks on end.

Maya turned her gaze to Kael, who slept on, completely oblivious to her going nuts over that dream. Maya ran her fingers through her hair again, and laid down, her feet in Kael’s lap.

She’d figure it out. But she’d have to get more details first, and put the pieces together. It’s the only way she knew to get some answers.

And asking Kael was out of the question.

Maya yawned and curled up again, resting her head on the crook of her arm. With her mind buzzing like crazy, Maya was lucky to get back to sleep at all.

“Maya, wake up.”

“Ugh….”

Maya groaned loudly, and curled up tighter on herself. Kael shook her shoulders, and she groaned a little bit louder. She didn’t want to get up.

“It’s almost two in the afternoon, and we haven’t eaten.”

In response to his statement, Maya’s stomach growled loudly, and she blushed bright red. Kael pulled her to her feet.

“I also need to check your bandage. I think it’s due for a replacement.”

“Can we have lunch first?”

“Yes, we can do lunch first. Would you like to help me?”

“I’d love to!”

Kael laughed, and patted the side of her head. She looked up at him and felt her face flush more. Kael blushed slightly, too, and then backed up a bit.

“C’mon, I decided to do some chicken for lunch. Are you okay with that?”

“Hey, you’re the head chef. Whatever you decide, goes. I’m just here to help.”

Maya smiled as they walked into the kitchen. Kael got out the chicken, among some tomatoes, dill, some cumin, and some other things she didn’t know.

“Can you cut the chicken while I cut the tomatoes?”

“Of course.”

Maya opened the package of chicken and drained the juice, then pulled a piece of chicken out and started cutting it up into even pieces. She continued the process, humming.

And then her finger stung.

“Ow!”

Maya dropped the knife on the counter and clutched her finger, trying to staunch the bleeding. Kael put down his knife, too, and came over to her.

“Come, this way, to the sink.”

His hand held hers, and with the other hand, he turned the sink water on. Kael pulled her hand under the water, washing away the blood. Maya hissed in pain, but let him do what he needed to do.

“It’s not deep, thankfully. You need to be more careful. That could’ve been a hell of a lot worst then it is.”

Kael grabbed a small brown bottle, and Maya flinched, remembering that bottle from her memories of scraps as a child. He got some bandages down, and a cotton ball.

“I know this will hurt like a mother, but you were cutting raw chicken. Lord only knows what that’ll do when it gets inside your body.”

Kael lightly soaked the cotton ball, and dabbed her finger with it. Maya flinched and shifted slightly. She hated this part of cuts and scrapes the most.

“Stop squirming, Maya! Geez, you act like such a child sometimes!”

That sentence rang bells in her head, and she looked up at him. Kael had stopped in his tracks, realizing what he’d said. Maya had this overwhelming feeling that he’d said this to her before.

But when?


	3. Chapter 3

Maya sat on the couch in the living room as Kael continued making lunch. After her mishap with the knife, he said that she wouldn’t be able to help now because of her injury. It sucked, but what could she do?

So Maya went out to the living room and stared at the TV, not really paying attention. She was thinking more than she was watching TV.

When Kael showed up, she started having weird dreams, the weirdest being her and the little boy. Kael had stirred up something in her subconscious, something she hadn’t thought about in a long time.

And she was determined to find out, even if she had to prod Kael as carefully for details about his childhood as possible. She just hoped she wouldn’t push him too far.

“Maya, lunch is ready.”

_Perfect timing._

Her stomach growled, and Maya joined Kael at the table. The chicken smelled wonderfully of sage and rosemary. He’d thrown a salad together, too, and Maya’s tomatoes were on the side.

“How’d you know I didn’t like tomatoes on my salad?”

“Lucky guess.”

Maya cut into her chicken and stabbed her fork through it, shoving it into her mouth. God, he was such a good cook. If only the rest of the world knew!

“Kael, I’ve got a question for you.”

“Go ahead.”

“Where did you grow up?”

Kael peeked over the edge of his glass, taking a long sip of soda. Maya wondered if she’d overstepped her boundary. Kael set the glass down and cleared his throat.

“Detroit. But my mother was from here.”

“What was your mother like?”

“She was a heroin addict and a prostitute to feed her nasty habit.” He muttered, stabbing his fork through a lettuce leaf.

“What about your dad?”

“He’s dead. Died over in Iraq. And nothing he did stopped my mother’s bad habits. I know this much: she cared more about getting her next hit than making sure her son was fed and bathed.”

Maya placed her fork down, feeling sick to her stomach already. Kael had continued eating, as if telling this story had no effect on him whatsoever.

“The final straw came down when she left me alone for three days with no food and water. I was taken away from her by CPS, and sent to my grandmother here in Tampa.”

Maya could hardly believe her ears. Kael probably had it rough, being the son of a heroin addict and a prostitute.

“What about you? I know about your dad, so what about your mom?”

“She’s dead. She had a huge battle with breast cancer and was losing it when I was around seven. The last three years of her life, of my memories were her in and out of the hospital. That was until dad stopped bringing me to see her. To say she suffered is an understatement.”

Maya cut up another piece of chicken and shoved into her mouth, to avoid talking for a minute. Talking about her mother’s death was difficult.

“She… She stole some diabetic medication and overdosed. She commited suicide because the pain was too much for her to deal with. I don’t understand why she did it today, and I wish she hadn’t every single day.”

She pushed her plate away and stood, pushing her chair back. Kael looked up at her from his plate. Maya tried to hold the tears back.

“I’ve lost my appetite, so I’m going to lie down now.”

Kael nodded and Maya left the table, heading upstairs as fast as she could. She pushed the door open and shut it so fast that it slammed, then flung herself onto the bed and started sobbing into the pillow.

This is why she didn’t like talking about her mom. It broke her every time she spoke of it. Knowing that her mother commited suicide hurt Maya so.

She’d question it for a long time after, wondering if her mom hadn’t loved her, or she hadn’t loved her mother enough. Maya knew the truth now, but it hurt still. Her mother had been in such incredible pain that death seemed the only way out for her.

But she couldn’t have tried to live for Maya’s sake.

Kael heard the door slam upstairs, and he silently cleared their plates, tossing the leftovers into containers and sending the salad down the disposal,

Kael had known her mom had been fighting breast cancer for some time, but he never knew that she’d killed herself to get out of the pain she was in.

His mother may have been a whore, but at least she hadn’t gone and killed herself. He shouldn’t have asked about her mother. He’d seen her about to cry as she stated that she was no longer hungry and wanted to go upstairs.

Kael plopped down on the couch and laid down, staring at the TV screen without really seeing anything. He wished he could tell her who he was, but she has to figure it about for herself. Kael couldn’t force her to remember. It wasn’t right to.

A phone lit up in the darkness of a room. Someone reached for it as it vibrated, and answered it.

“Hello?”

“It’s me.”

“Have they arrived at the safe house?”

“Yes, they arrived very early this morning.”

“Good. Did you give them the car?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good. You did well today, Allah Jubarai. Keep this up and maybe I’ll make you a lieutenant.”

“That will be muchly appreciated, sir. I shall call with an update in three days.”

“Don’t blow this now, or its back into the hole with you!”

“I promise, sir, I won’t mess up again this time!”

The unknown person ended the call and rolled over, yawning loudly.

_Things are going according to plan. Now if only they could get their hands on that American girl and get her to tell them where the bio weapon was._

Kael awoke when he heard footsteps on the stairs. He sat up and rubbed his eyes. Maya stood at the base of the stairs, her arms wrapped around her waist.

“Do you mind if I lay on couch with you? I had a bad dream and I find it better if I lay down with someone.”

“Sure. Come on.”

Maya climbed in, her head at Kael’s feet, and her own feet barely reached his chest. Maya closed her eyes and nodded off. Kael watched her for a minute, and wished the old Maya would come back.

She’d never been this bad with sleep when she was younger. It seems like her mother’s suicide had changed Maya drastically. It hurt a little to see her like this, but there wasn’t much he could do.

_I really wish I hadn’t asked that question in the first place._

It’d been a horrible idea.

Maya groaned and curled up tighter as nightmares plagued her sleep. Her mother’s suicide seemed to be the main topic of them, in one way or another. She wished it would stop.

_“What do you mean, mommy went to heaven?”_

_“She went to go meet grandma and papa and Uncle Joe and aunt May and Rita the cat, too. That’s what I mean, baby.”_

_“Will I get to see her again?”_

_“Yes, but hopefully not for a long time.”_

“Stop…” Maya whispered, almost whimpering.

_“Mommy, mommy, look what I made in school!”_

_“Oh darling, it’s beautiful. Did you do it all by yourself?”_

_“I had some help from the teacher, but I did the rest on my own.”_

_“You should hang it on the fridge at home. That way I’ll see it when I get home.”_

“No… Don’t lie to me…”

_“Where’s Maya? Where’s my papaya?”_

_Maya giggled from behind her toy house, and tried to keep her voice down so she could hide a little bit longer from Mommy._

_“Oh, where is my little papaya? Is she behind… the toy house?”_

_Maya screeched as her mother grabbed her around her waist and spun her around, grinning._

_“I love you, mommy.”_

_“I love you, too, baby.”_

“STOP!”

Maya jerked up and clutched her blanket, catching her breath. Kael didn’t even react when she screamed, and she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.

Her dreams had never gotten that bad before. She’d never dreamed about her mother like that three times in a row. All this talk about her mother brought up memories she’d rather not remember.

With a sigh, Maya laid back down and went back to sleep, breathing softly and swiftly, falling into a deep sleep once again.

A smash awoke Kael several hours later, and he sat up. The kitchen light was on, and Maya was standing there, her hands and shoulders shaking. She was crying, that much was obvious.

“Maya, what’s wrong? What happened?”

“I had some bad dreams about my mom…”

Kael felt guilty now for asking about her mom. With a small sigh, he took her hands in his and led her away from the glass and over to the couch.

“Sit. I’ll get the glass cleaned up.”

Maya didn’t answer, and Kael left her there, finding a broom and pan, sweeping the glass into the pan. He dumped it into the trash, and then joined Maya on the couch.

“Are you okay? Did you get any glass anywhere?”

“No…”

Kael ran his fingers over her hair, trying to soothe her. She was still shaking, not as much so, but enough for him to notice it. Her dreams had shaken her badly.

“I feel like this was my fault.”

“What do you mean, Kael? My nightmares don’t happen because someone said something.”

“I asked about your mom. And it was such a big mistake.”

Maya closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and, with a feeling that she may regret this, hugged Kael with all her might. He went stiff under her, but she held on anyway.

“Don’t be stupid. My nightmares aren’t your fault, so stop blaming yourself. That’s an order.”

He chuckled and she smiled as he hugged her back. She rested her head on his shoulder, yawning. It was comfortable in Kael’s arms, and she was so tired.

“Fine, boss lady. I’ll stop, if that’s what you want.”

Maya didn’t respond, and snored softly instead. Chuckling, he settled back on the couch with her, and covered up with a light blanket. With a loud yawn, he fell asleep quickly, his hand on her lower back.

Maya awoke when bright sunlight hit her in the face. Groaning loudly, she fumbled for a pillow and shoved her head underneath it. Maya noticed she was on the couch and wondered when she’d gotten there.

And where was Kael?

As she reached to remove the pillow, something fluttered against her fingers. Maya pulled the pillow off and looked down to see a note was taped to it.

_Maya,_

_I went out to get some groceries. I locked all the doors and the windows before I left. The password to let me back in is ‘Tampa’, okay? ‘ **Tampa** ’! Don’t forget._

_-Kael_

So he went shopping. That explained how quite it was. With another muffled yawn, Maya ripped the paper off and collapsed back onto the pillow, tossing the note onto the floor.

God, she was tired. Her nightmares had wrecked absolute havoc on her body. When was the last time Maya had slept that badly?

_Oh, right. The night after mom killed herself._

She’d been naïve as fuck then, not knowing better, believing that mom hadn’t killed herself, and just let the cancer take her.

Maya picked up the remote and turned on the TV, not paying attention to what was going on, and listened for a knock at the door. Kael had a distinct knock, not too loud and not too soft. He also knocked between his chest and chin.

Everything about Kael was distinct, and outlandish to anyone who hadn’t spent any time with him at all. Maya smiled to herself as she remember Kael’s reaction to her hugging him. He was warming up to her, at least.

She took that as a good sign.

Someone knocked on the door, and Maya made a beeline for it, standing on her tiptoes to peek out the peephole. It was Kael, which she could make out. But she still needed to ask for the password, to be sure it really was him.

“What’s the password?”

“Tampa.”

Maya unlocked the door and let Kael in, shutting and locking it back behind them. Kael set two bags down on the counter and stretched, cracking his neck.

“Do you need help unloading this into the fridge?”

“Yeah, but in a minute. I have to do something first.”

“Okay.”

Kael pulled out the burner he’d gotten before they left, and walked out of the kitchen and into the dining room. Maya heard him press keys on the phone and then silence for a moment.

“AJ, please tell me you’ve some spare tires for the Impala. I came out this morning and the tires were slashed.”

Maya leaned against the counter, pretending to be staring into space as she listened in on AJ and Kael’s conversation. She couldn’t believe that someone had slash the tires on the Impala.

“Yeah, and I’m getting a weird feeling about the tires just suddenly being slashed like this. It’s a bit disconcerting, and I’m concerned about Maya. What if someone knew she was here?”

Maya turned away from him, blushing red. Was he really that concerned about her? Or was she letting her imagination run wild again? She had no idea!

“I think that’ll be best. Maybe some extra security. I think we’d all be able to breathe a little easier if there was more security, especially if I go out for something. I was rushing to get out and back from the store before I came back to an empty safe house!”

She covered her mouth and turned even redder. Maya turned the sink on and splashed her face with water, hoping to reduce the redness. Why was she getting so worked up by Kael’s concern for her safety?

_That’s his job. He’s supposed to protect me. His concern is normal, that’s all._

But why didn’t she believe that?

Maya turned off the sink and dried her face, hearing Kael hang up on the phone. She hoped and prayed that her face wasn’t as red as before, or at all for that matter.

“So, what did you get at the store?”

“Some chicken patties, to do chicken parmesan, ground beef for hamburgers and another for tacos, and some ice cream for dessert or just to snack on. I got some chips and soda, too.”

Maya nodded, and the two got to putting everything away, neither speaking to the other, but equally comfortable in the silence. They were done in a few minutes, and Maya stretched.

Her stomach growled, and she covered her face in embarrassment. Kael chuckled, and just patted her head.

“You haven’t eaten yet.”

He said it in more of statement, rather than a question. She nodded meekly and Kael, pulled down a bowl and some Special K.

“Pour some of this into the bowl while I get the milk.”

“Ok.”

Maya poured the cereal into the bowl, and put the box back in the cupboard where Kael pulled it from. He returned with the milk and handed it to her. She poured it and then put the cap back on, handing it back to Kael.

“Don’t forget a spoon and go eat.”

“Yes… _sir_.”

Maya smirked at him and saluted him, then went out to the couch to eat. She didn’t eat Special K a lot, but it was good, at least. Maya changed the channel to the news, hoping to maybe her some BS story about her father or if any new information had been discovered.

When she learned nothing new, she sighed and took her bowl out, washing it clean and drying it, then putting it away.

The two crashed on the couch and just stared at the TV. Nothing interesting was on, and they didn’t really have much to talk about.

About two hours later, there was the sound of a vehicle approaching the house. Maya tensed, but Kael placed his hand on her knee and shook his head. She relaxed a bit when he did that.

“I think that’s AJ. I’ll check to be sure that it’s him.”

Kael stood and walked over to the window, peeking out of it. He stood for a moment and then pulled back as a car door slammed.

“It’s AJ with the replacement tires. Will you be okay a few minutes while the two of us replace the tires?”

“I think I’ll be fine, Kael. I made it through this morning with no incident.”

“Just call for either of us if something happens to you. We’ll come running.”

“Well do.”

Kael then disappeared out the door, and left Maya to her own devices, which was watching the TV. She didn’t have her phone, which she assumed was in the hands of Director Banks.

It sucked, yes, not being in contact with the outside world, but this was her reality right now, no matter how temporary it is. And she had to be the grown up she knew she could be and suck it up.

Maya contented herself with the TV, watching reruns of Full House and the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. It wasn’t particularly exciting, like the parties she went to, but Maya found it nice to laugh at something, and not fake laugh with her friends.

Maya flipped between channels, until she found George Lopez and settled on that. It was funny, honestly. Lopez knew how to make a show normal but comedic at the same time. She liked the show.

Kael’s phone went off beside her and she put down the remote, and picked the burner up. The ID said Director, so Maya went to the door and opened it.

“Psst… Kael! Kael! The Director is calling!”

Kael cleaned the dirt off his hands and took his burner from her. He pressed it between his ear and shoulder, talking into it.

“What? You think you have an idea…?”

Maya blinked, wondering what the Director is telling him. Could it be good news or bad news? Maybe a bit of both?  
Maya couldn’t take any more bad news.

“I’ll let her know, Director. We are both well. Yes, you, too. Bye.”

Kael hung up and turned to Maya, grinning. Maya smiled back, wondering what all the good news was. She hoped it was good news.

“Maya, they think they found a trail of your father.”

Maya grinned widely, and flung her arms around Kael. He didn’t get as stiff as the first time, and actually hugged her back. She smiled into his shoulder, and sniffled a little.

“Are you crying?”

“Tears of joy, maybe.”

Kael moved his hands to her shoulders and moved her back so he could look at her. Maya blinked and wiped the tears from her cheeks.

“Maya, I want you to understand this. Yes, it’s a good thing that they might have a trail on your father, but at the same time it’s not. I want you to know that they could have a trail, but it could run cold. Or they can find him dead, Maya. I’m telling this to you so you don’t get your hopes up and they find him in a less desirable condition that anyone would‘ve liked. I’ve see it happen more times than I can even tell you.”

Maya nodded and freed herself from his grasp gently. Of course… She’d forgotten for a moment that her dad could be found dead. He’d been over it with her since she was twelve years old.

Of course she knew that he could die while he was away from her.

Maya returned to the couch and watched George Lopez make a fool of himself at a doctor appointment for his son Max. She giggled and curled around the pillow she was holding, resting her head on it.

Kael watched her go for a minute, and then stuffed the burner into his pocket, heading back outside. AJ was on the third tire, leaving the fourth for Kael.

“What was the call about?”

“It was the Director. They think they found a trail on Maya’s dad.”

AJ looked over at him, his hands slowing for a moment before resuming the loosing of the nut holding the tire in. Kael started on the first nut, loosening it.

“Do they really?”

“They think so.”

AJ nodded and moved onto the next nut, shoving the previous into his pocket. Both boys continued in silence, and tightened the last nut at the same time.

“There. All replaced and brand new. I don’t know what happened, but I’d be on your guard. Someone did this, and since neither of us know who, you need to be careful. I’d stay, Kael, I really would, but I’m on my own mission at the moment. I was lucky that I had a few hours before I had to go do recon.”

“I appreciate it, AJ, I do. We need the car in shape in case we should need to get away and quickly. Anyway, do you want to join us for dinner later? After you switch with Valdez?”

“Sure, man, I’d love to.”

“Alright. What time is the switch out?”

“Six, so expect me at six thirty, maybe six forty-five.”

Kael nodded, and bumped fists with AJ. AJ climbed into his FBI undercover car, and drove off down the street, leaving trails of dust in his wake. Kael went back inside and went to the kitchen, washing his hands.

“AJ’s coming for dinner, after he and Valdez switch shifts. Is kielbasa and rice okay for dinner?”

“Yeah, that’s fine.”

Kael peeked over at her. She was lying on the couch, curled around a pillow, and staring at the TV. It was just like with her mom. No matter how much she tries to keep it under wraps, Maya knows her father could die any day.

Obviously, losing her parent again for the second time wasn’t an option she considered, but always had in the back of her mind.

Kael turned the water off, and dried his hands on the towel hanging from the handle of the stove. He walked back to the couch and sat down next to her.

“You okay?”

“Sort of.”

Kael sighed and patted her ankle to get her attention.

“I never felt any remorse towards my mother. I only felt hatred and angry. I was glad she was dead. She was nothing but a heroin addict, and a whore. She didn’t care about me, and didn’t care what happened to me.”

Maya sat up slowly, her gaze steady on Kael as he spoke, his hands laced between his legs.

“That’s not even the half of it. I hated my dad, too, for leaving. I hated him for leaving me with her, for not taking me with him. I was an angry kid, lashing out at everyone for how life treated me like shit. I didn’t get into drugs, since I saw how they practically ruined my mother. I fought, though, and got into fights at school and in the neighborhood.”

Kael sighed, and looked at the ceiling, taking a deep breath before resuming.

“I didn’t graduate high school. I got expelled, and wound up on the street all hours of the day. If it wasn’t for Director Banks, I’d been in jail now.”

Kael turned to her, and smiled softly. Maya smiled back, a small one, and wrapped her arms around her knees, her long, blonde hair making a curtain around her.

“My point, Maya, is that parents make mistakes. They don’t listen, and do things you’ll be upset with them. Your mom did something that you’re upset about with her. But she’s gone, and there’s no way to change that. All you can do is move on and hope for the best.”

“If you got kicked out of school and never graduated, how did you get into the academy?”

“Director Banks got me in on a scholarship.”

“So, since you’re doing missions now, does that mean you graduated?”

“I haven’t graduated yet. This mission was urgent, and I was pulled from the Academy in the meantime. She did say she would get the best. And I am the best. The head of my class.”

“So, you haven’t graduate yet. What are doing about finishing at the Academy if you’re on mission?”

“I’m doing classes online.”

Maya nodded and turned to face the TV, leaning her head on Kael’s shoulder. He stiffened, but relaxed after a minute. Maya smiled and mentally ticked off another accomplishment.

“So, what are we doing for lunch?”

AJ did a voice command inside the car. He waited as the phone rang and rang. He drummed his fingers on the wheel of the car. His Bluetooth glowed by his ear as he waited.

“Yes?”

“I’ve implanted the tracking device.”

“Good, good! Now we’ll know wherever they are, and where they’ll move her. Good job. Your reward will be waiting at your apartment.”

“Thank you, sir. I appreciate the gift.”

AJ hung up and tossed the Bluetooth device into the center console, turning into the hotel he was staying at, doing recon, as he told Kael.

Kael leaned back on the couch and closed his eyes. What in the world was he doing? If he kept it up, he might alert her to who he is and what their relationship really is.

_God only knows what kind of backlash there’ll be._

“Are we having sandwiches for lunch?”

“Yeah. Save the good food for dinner.”

“Okay.”

Maya turned her gaze back to the TV, and found herself thinking about Kael. He opened up to her today about his difficult past. She appreciated his honesty.

_If only I could be that honest with someone…_

Maya laid back down and watched George Lopez. She needed to shower today, and brush her hair, and change clothes. Preferably before AJ arrived for dinner.

Maybe she’d put a little lipgloss on. She could try and look nice. Maybe Kael would give her a compliment.

Maya turned bright red and covered her face with the pillow. Kael seemed to be making her blush lately. She wasn’t sure if it was because she was awkward, but it was taking damn control of her thoughts. Since they were in the same house together, Maya saw him a lot.

It made for a frightful combination, in her mind.

Kael got up around 12:30 and made them some sandwiches, hers with mustard and no cheese, his with cheese and mayo.

Maya took a bite of her sandwich and smiled softly to herself. If she had to be completely honest, Kael was great. He’s been treating her with upmost respect since they arrived on Sunday morning.

“I’m going to go shower.”

“Alright. I’ll take care of your plate. Make sure to remove your bandage before you get in. It’s not waterproof.”

“Yes, sir.”

Kael chuckled and took Maya’s plate. Maya stood and walked up the stairs, running her fingers through her slightly knotted hair.

“Towels are in the hall before the bathroom.”

“Thank you, Kael.”

Maya retrieved a towel and her clothes, then went into the bathroom. Ever since the incident that caused Kael and the Director to transport her out of Florida to Georgia, Maya has been a little wary of bathrooms.

It might be why she’s been avoiding the shower like a plague, but now she couldn’t anymore.

Maya set her stuff down and started the shower. She stripped and piled her dirty clothes on the counter. Maya slowly removed the bandage to allow herself to be able to wash her neck.

She checked the water, and felt it was warm enough. Maya climbed in and enjoyed the warm water for a moment. After a moment, she located the body wash, and squirted a small dollop into the washcloth.

Maya wetted it and rubbed it together, forming suds. She ran it over her neck lightly and winced as the cut stung slightly. It hadn’t healed all the way, but it was getting there.

Maya continued with the wash cloth, going down her arms and body and legs. She then wrung the cloth out and hung it up, stepping under the spray to rid herself of soap. Maya tipped her head forward and let the water run down on it, soaking it.

She closed her eyes, thinking back on Kael’s story, on letting go of the past. Maybe she should let go of her mother’s death. It was so long ago. She’d just started middle school, and it’d been bad timing, if anyone could call it that.

_I’ve been upset with you for so long, mom. But I’ve got to let it go, and move on. It’s the only way I’ll ever be happy._

Maya leaned back from the showerhead, and grabbed her shampoo, squirting a small dollop into her palm. She rubbed her hands together, lathering it up.

Maya gathered her hair in a bunch and rubbed the shampoo through it. Some shampoo slid down her forehead and into her right eye.

Her eye began burning, and she washed her hands free of the shampoo. Maya rubbed her eye, trying to get rid of the burning sensation. The burning sensation got worst instead of better.

_Something is wrong._

Maya turned the water off, not even bothering with her hair, and grabbed a towel, wrapping it around herself tightly. She pulled the door open and stumbled to the bedroom door.

“Kael! KAEL! Come quickly!”

Maya collapsed on the floor, her legs tucked up underneath her, as she tried to stop the burning in her right eye. Kael burst into the room a minute later, and knelt in front of her.

“What happened?”

“I was washing my hair and got some soap in my eye. And now it’s burning, which I know is normal when a person gets soap in their eyes. _But this isn’t normal_ , Kael. Not even close.”

Kael held her eye open and then released her, standing up quickly. Maya covered her eye, squinting it shut, and looked up at him.

“I’m going to get something. I’ll be right back. Don’t rub it or anything.”

Maya nodded, and Kael left, taking the stairs two at a time. She heard a loud thump, and the clinking of items being dumped from a bag, maybe.

Kael thundered up the stairs again, and dropped a box in front of her, kneeling before her and opening the box. He pulled out a bottle and a dropper.

“Maya, I need you to hold your eyelids open, okay? I need to be able to get this into your eye.”

Kael squeezed the end of the dropper and suctioned up some of the liquid inside. He screwed the lid back on and scooted closer to Maya.

“Ready?”

“As ready as I am.”

Kael aimed the dropper over her eye and squeezed the dropper. Maya screamed and forced her eye shut, covering her face as the pain increased tens fold. Kael grabbed her and held her against him as she screamed.

“I know, I know. It’s gonna hurt, but it’s getting whatever was in the shampoo out of your eye before it does some permanent damage. Just hold tight, okay? I have to get the rest into your eye.”

Kael opened her eye again, and raised the dropper over it, squeezing what was left into her eye. She screamed again, and her nails dug into his arms, drawing blood. Kael tossed the dropper back into the box and held her, his hand in her hair as she screamed.

After some time, she finally stopped screaming. Kael picked up a towel and ran it under her eye. Maya’s eye was bloodshot, but at least it’s a better result than what could’ve been.

“Better?”

“Very much.”

Kael placed the towel in her hand, and stood, heading into the bathroom. He grabbed the shampoo and brought it out with him.

“I’m sending this to the techs at our Lab in Tampa. Until we know for sure what was in your shampoo, I suggest you use mine in the meanwhile.”

“Ok.”

“I’m, uh, gonna leave you to get the soap out of your hair…”

Kael turned red, and Maya turned red, too, as she remembered that she was only in her towel. Maya covered her face, blushing, and groaned softly.

“I’ll, uh, be downstairs if you need anything.”

“O-Ok.” She stammered, still hiding her face when Kael shut the door.

Maya got into the bathroom quickly, and washed her hair, getting that damn shampoo out of it. Maya dried herself off and pulled on a grey shirt and some white shorts.

She dumped her clothes in a laundry basket in the hall. Maya turned down around the stairs just in time for Kael to get off the phone.

“Since AJ is on recon right now, the Director is sending Nikki to come get it. She take it to our boys in white over there.”

“Okay.”

Maya leaned against the railing and sighed, closing her eyes warily. This was too much for her to deal with.

“You okay?”

“I am, for the most part. I was wondering why on Earth I can’t catch a break. We’ve only been here, what? Not quite three days? I was attacked nearly three days ago, and nearly three days later, I nearly had my right eye burned out.”

“Speaking of three days ago… I need to get a bandage on you. By Friday, you’ll be able to stop wearing them, I think. We’ll have to play it by the ear. Sit.”

Maya took a seat and pulled her hair over to the uninjured side, angling her head so Kael had an easier time of getting the bandage on.

“So what time did AJ say he’d be here?”

“Around six, he said. When him and Valdez switch shifts.”

Maya nodded, and Kael gently applied some anti-biotic on her wound. She winced and gripped her hands together. It still hurt, maybe not as bad, but it still hurt.

“Yeah, I’m thinking the end of the week on this. From the look of the scab, it’s definitely almost another step forward to not having to wear bandages anymore.”

“Good, because this itches having it on all the time.”

“I’m sure it does, but it’s only for two more days. Two more days and you’ll be free of it. And then two weeks later, you’ll get your stitches out.”

That was the part she looked forward to. She was looking forward to get the stitches removed and go back to looking semi-normal. The possibility of having a scar was huge, but she’d take a scar that can be hidden with foundation than a bandage that sticks out like a sore thumb.

“We’re having kielbasa and rice, correct?”

“Yeah, we are.”

“Kielbasa sounds good, but I’ve never had it before.”

“You’re in for a treat then. It’s really good meat. And delicious, too. You can dip it in different things, too.”

Maya smiled and pulled her hair back over her shoulder, making a curtain around herself. Kael packed up her bandages and went into the kitchen, placing them in the cupboard above the stove.

“I’m gonna go lay down, if that’s alright.”

“Go ahead. I’ll wake you for dinner.”

“Thanks.”

Maya stood and walked back upstairs, shutting her door behind her. She collapsed on her bed, face first, and snuggled into her pillow. Now, it wasn’t her bed at home. But she had to make do with what was given to her.

She wasn’t a complainer if she could avoid it.

Maya closed her eyes, and dreamed again of the little boy who reminded her so much of Kael.

_“Maya, this is Kael. Kael, this is Maya.”_

_“Hello, Maya.”_

_Maya remained silent, shy and nervous as always. The boy smiled at her._

_“Do you want to play with the blocks, Maya? We could build a really cool castle!”_

_Maya’s shy demeanor dissipated at the mention of the blocks. With no hesitation, Maya joined the boy, **Kael** , by the blocks, and together the two built a castle._

Maya gasped, and jerked awake. What in the world was that dream? Why did her father call the little boy Kael? Yes, the little boy in her memory and Kael in reality looked very much alike. But they couldn’t be the same person.

Could they?

She couldn’t flat out ask Kael. It’s ridiculously stupid to when she wasn’t a hundred present sure herself if reality Kael was the little boy in her dreams, in her memories.

And if she did ask, what if she was wrong? What if Kael denied it? She’d look stupid then. And of all the things Maya hates in this world, looking stupid was the worst of them all.

_I won’t ask him. Not until I have concrete evidence that Kael is the little boy in her dreams and memories._

Maya got up and walked into the bathroom in the hall, running her fingers through for knots. She then took a little bit of clear lipgloss and put some on.

Maya checked the time back in her room. It was four forty-five. Kael might be prepping dinner. She knew Kael, and that was most likely what he was doing.

At six o’clock, AJ knocked on the door and then let himself in after Kael called from the kitchen to come in. Maya was setting the table, humming to herself.

Kael had the meat going on the Foreman grill, and rice cooking in a pot on the stove. Maya sniffed the air, and heard her stomach growl.

“Smells great, Kael.”

“Thanks, AJ. Maya, is the table set? The food is almost done.”

“Yeah, Kael, it’s set.”

Kael turned off the heat to the rice, and slowly scooped it into a bowl. He then removed the meat and placed it on a plate, then unplugged the Foreman from the wall.

“Maya, can you take the kielbasa out for me? AJ, can you take the rice? I’ll be out with drinks and condiments in a moment.”

Maya slipped into the kitchen and took the plate of kielbasa from Kael, then headed out to the table. AJ followed behind with the rice, and Maya set the kielbasa down on the table. AJ placed the rice in front of the kielbasa and then took a seat across from Maya.

Kael joined them a minute later, and set down three cups of water, then some condiments. He took the seat inbetween Maya and AJ.

He cut a piece of meat off for himself, and Maya cut herself a piece, sliding it onto her plate. She scooped some rice onto her plate, and picked up her knife and fork, cutting her meat.

Maya stabbed a piece of meat, and shoved it into her mouth, absolutely starving. Her father claimed her appetite was like a lion, always hungry for more.

At least she did track to get the extra pounds off.

Kael’s phone buzzed on the corner of the table, and Kael put down his fork to pick it up. He sighed and pressed answer, stepping away from the table.

“It must be the Director.”

AJ didn’t say anything, just watched her as he took a long sip from his cup. Maya shifted, feeling a bit uncomfortable under his stare.

AJ set his glass down, and linked his fingers together, resting his chin on them. Maya shifted her gaze, and picked up her cup, taking a sip from the glass.

“I hate you.”

Maya choked on her water, and set her glass down, coughing. AJ just smiled at her, almost as if Maya’s reaction was _funny_.

_Did he really say what she thinks he said?_


	4. Chapter 4

“E-Excuse me?” Maya stammered, finally catching her breath.

“You heard me, Maya.”

Maya felt her throat tighten. Why did AJ hate her? What did she do to even deserve hatred from him? AJ stared, unblinking, at Maya.

“What did I do, AJ? Did I do something wrong?”

“God, you’re naïve. Maya, dear, you’ll learn someday soon why I hate you, just not today.”

Kael walked back into the dining room, setting the phone down on the table and taking his seat. AJ, turned back to his meal, making it seem as if their conversation had never taken place.

Maya felt sick.

“Kael, I don’t feel good. I’m gonna go lay down.”

“You do look pale.”

Kael’s fingers cupped her chin, and she felt her cheeks flush. AJ watched her over his shoulder, and his index finger made a horizontal line across his throat.

Maya flinched, and jerked up, pushing her chair back. Kael looked up at her, his eyes showing a look of confusion. Maya had to leave, _now_.

“I’m going now. Can you save my plate for me, Kael? I might be hungry later.”

Maya left it at that, and took off upstairs. She slammed the door shut and locked it, then slid to the floor. She didn’t feel safe around AJ, not anymore. After what he said, Maya had a bad feeling about him. Could he have been the one to have put something into her shampoo?

Maya didn’t know, and she certainly didn’t like him being in the house. And he was downstairs alone with Kael right now.

Maya closed her eyes and sat there with her head against the door. She didn’t realize how tired she was, nights of not sleeping properly had finally caught up with her.

She jerked awake as someone banged on the door of her room. Maya rubbed her eyes and stood, unlocking the door in a half asleep manner. Kael was on the other side of the door, and he was furious.

“Why did you lock the door, Maya!? I was knocking on that door for a half hour! What were you doing?”

“I was sleeping in front of the door.”

Kael gave her a look of utter desperation, and covered his face, groaning softly. Maya watched him, and yawned again.

“Don’t lock the door again unless I tell you to. Is that understood?”

“Yes, sir…”

“Go to sleep, you lug nut. I sometimes wonder how you made it this far without doing something stupid before.”

“I do, too, Kael.”

Maya turned from him and walked over to her bed, collapsing in it and fall back asleep, snoring softly. Kael watched her for a brief moment, and then shut the door. He headed downstairs, and went to clean up after dinner.

Kael saved Maya’s plate, all wrapped in saran wrap, and disposed of the rest. He then washed the dishes and put them away. He then crashed on the couch, sleeping soundlessly but steady, waiting for something to happen, like he did every night, coiled tight like a spring.

Maya woke up around three, her throat bothering her something fierce. It was dry, that much she was sure of. She opened her door as quietly as possible, slipping into the kitchen for a cup of water.

Maya drank it all in two gulps, and placed the cup gently in the sink. Maya felt drunk, although she was only tired. And Maya knew that. With a soft groan, she climbed back upstairs and went back to sleep in her bed, curled up like a ball.

AJ stood in his hotel room, his phone on speaker as he spoke. It was after three in the morning, but AJ had to speak with his boss, regardless of the time.

“In three days, you’ll be sending someone after her again?”

“Yes. Now that we have the exact location of where she is and the GPS on her bag, we can follow her to wherever she escapes to. You have done well, Allah Jubarai.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“I will call in a few days’ time, should all go well.”

“Yes, sir.”

Maya slept like a baby, for the first time in three days. With all the stress and ugly reminders, she’d not slept well at all. But tonight she did, like she took some sleeping medication.

It was nice.

Kael was up by seven forty five. Maya was still asleep, so Kael decided now would be the best time to call the Director.

Kael dialed her number and waited as the phone rang. It rang a few times before the Director picked up.

“Good morning, Director. How have you been?”

“Good morning, Kael. I’ve been better, I suppose. How are things on your end? I hear Maya had a mishap.”

“I don’t think it was a ‘mishap’ so much as ‘sabotage’. Someone put some acid in her shampoo, and when she got some in her eye, it almost damaged her eye. Have you located her father?”

“I’m afraid not. The tip we got led us to where his van was knocked off the road, but otherwise, no. It was a sort of dead end. But I have all the confidence we will find Maya’s father.”

“I agree. Her dad has to be alive. We haven’t received any death threats, and neither has his family. If they were going to kill him, there’d been a death threat. I think they don’t want to kill him, in case he knows where the bio weapon is. That’s the only reason they are keeping him alive.”

“I agree with you, Kael. But unless something concrete, like a video of what is happening to Maya’s father surfaces, we have no way of knowing for sure if he is alive or not.”

“I’ll keep an eye on things here and report back to you in a few days’ time with an update. Maya’s settled in well, despite all the chaos.”

“Good! Hopefully we can locate her father and she’ll be able to go back to her normal life.”

“I hope so, too.”

“I will speak to you soon.”

“Indeed.”

Kael hung up and tossed his phone on the side table, taking a seat on the couch, and closing his eyes. It’s been a stressful last couple of days. With the tires slashed and the shampoo incident that almost became an accident, he was stretched thin as it was.

He’d been worried about Maya when he’d gone upstairs to check on her and found to door locked. It’d freaked him out and resulted in his reaction. Kael hoped he didn’t upset her with that outburst.

_I don’t think I did, given how half asleep she was._

Kael opened his eyes and found the remote, turning on the TV at a low volume, and laid down, staring at the ceiling until he fell asleep.

_ “Kael, this is Maya.” _

_ Kael had been the only child around the FBI office during the day, and now this new girl was here. She clung to her father’s leg, and held a bear tightly in her arms. Her dirty blonde hair was up in a ponytail, and she wore a simple pink dress with matching shoes. _

_ “Maya, dear, I have work to do. You need to let go and stay with Kael.” _

_ “But I don’t want to!” _

_ Kael watched her plead and beg with her father to let her come with him. Kael decided to step up to the plate and find a way to convince Maya to stay. _

_ “Maya, do you like Legos?” _

_ “Y-Yes.” _

_ “I’ve got a hug box of Legos over here. Let’s go build a castle!” _

_ “Okay!” _

_ Maya released her father’s leg and ran off with Kael to the Legos. The two children dumped the box and dug through the pile, talking excitedly about what kind of castle she’d like. _

Kael sat up, gasping. He hadn’t dreamed of that day in a long time. He wondered what caused it to suddenly appear and make him dream about that day.

But that day made him smile. It was the day he meet Maya, and his life changed entirely on that single moment. Maya and he built the castle, and he said she was the princess of the tiny castle. They then played pirate and princess, laughing like loons the whole day away.

_Those had been better times. Long before Maya’s mother had died._

After this was over, he hoped she got a normal life with her dad and just living day to day, moment to moment. That’s all he wanted for her, ever since they were children.

Kael climbed off the couch, and headed upstairs, opening Maya’s door. She was sound asleep, snoring slightly. Kael leaned against the doorframe and watched her for a few minutes, before feeling like a stalker.

_I shouldn’t be watching her like this. What if she wakes up?_

Kael sighed, and turned away from her, shutting the door quietly behind him. He returned downstairs, and laid back down on the couch, turning on the TV to the Food Network, his favorite channel.

Gordon Ramsey was on the screen, yelling at a cook for how improperly cleaned the kitchen was. Kael chuckled, turning onto his side to face the TV screen.

Gordon Ramsey was his idol, had been a long time now. He was twelve years old when he watched Gordon Ramsey the first time.

It’d been a magical moment when he’d watched Ramsey cook up a meal. It’d aspired him, you could say. But until Kael almost ended up on the streets as a druggie at sixteen, he never had taken it seriously. After he met the Director for the first time since he was a child, and she gave him an ultimatum, he decided to take it seriously.

He agreed to join the Academy only if he had free and complete reign over the kitchen. The Director agreed, and Kael took over the kitchen. The boys in the dorm couldn’t believe he had free reign over the kitchen.

They’d stopped complaining after Kael cooked dinner and they all sat down and ate together in the dorm’s dining hall.

He was still in contact with some of the boys he’d live with, those who’d graduated before him, and came by for his cooking on occasion. They knew he was getting his first mission this week, and had congratulated him on it.

Kael had half a year on his schooling. After that, he’d be a full-fledged agent, and will do more than security details. He didn’t mind doing them, but some of the girls he’d babysat before this were snotty brats that drove him to the edge of his patience.

Maya wasn’t like that. At least she wasn’t when she was away from her friends and school. When she was alone or with someone she could keep her guard down with, she opened up and revealed her true personality.

Maya hated her mother for killing herself, and hated herself for hating her mom. He’d seen that in the way her eyes had glossed over when he told her that she couldn’t hate her mother forever.

She wanted her father’s attention, and has wanted it since her mother passed away. She wanted her father to spend time with her, to take time off of work for once. She wants him to eat dinner with her. She wanted his love.

Kael didn’t hate Maya, not like those other snotty girls he’d dealt with before. She was different, different from the girls before. She’d open up to him, which is something none of the other girls had ever done before.

Kael yawned, and closed his eyes, slipping into a dreamless sleep. The image of Maya smiling at him stuck in his mind before he fell asleep, and he smiled as he thought about it.

Maya woke up, and rubbed her eyes, rolling over. The sun streamed through the windows, and the day greeted her with warm sunlight.

She smiled and got out of bed, opening her suitcase to pull out a marron tank top and black shorts. Maya pulled her shirt over her head, and grabbed a black bra, sliding it on and clasping it tight. She pulled the tank top on and then her shorts.

Maya went down the stairs two at a time and landed on the first floor landing. Despite AJ’s comments last night, Maya felt awesome.

“Hey, Kael, what’s for breakfast?”

“French Toast okay?”

“Absolutely.”

Maya pulled a coffee cup down and poured herself a cup of coffee. She then poured some Delights creamer, flavored gingerbread, into her coffee and then two spoon fulls of sugar into the cup. Maya stirred the coffee and took a big sip, leaning against the counter.

She let out a sigh, closing her eyes.

It’d been days since she’d had coffee.

“You’re in a chipper mood.”

“I guess because I got a good night of sleep. Oh, Kael, I have something I wanted to run by you.”

“Okay, shoot.”

“I was wondering, if it didn’t cause too much trouble, if we could go out today. It’s such a beautiful day, and I’ve been cooped up in this house for three days. I think it’s time we had a change of scenery. What do you think?”

Kael set down the French toast mixture and turned to Maya, leaning against the counter. She was really hoping that he didn’t say no. She really wanted to go out.

“Only on the condition that you don’t wonder off on your own.”

“I promise, Kael, I won’t!”

“Where do you want to go?”

“I’d like to go to the zoo. I’ve never been and had always wanted to go.”

“Okay, zoo it is. The closest zoo is the Oatland Island Wildlife Center of Savannah. It’s cheap, so we’d be able to get in without spending an arm and a leg. Plus, it’s only twenty minutes from here.”

Maya grinned, and struggled to contain herself. Kael returned to the bowl, and Maya hugged him from behind. Kael jumped a little, not expecting that.

“Thank you, Kael!”

Maya released him and walked into the dining room, taking a seat next to where he usually sat. Kael resumed whisking the eggs, but his face was slightly red.

She’d caught him off guard, when he least suspected it. Even though it’d caught him off guard, he wouldn’t have mind if she hugged him again.

He felt his cheeks burn, and he returned to the task at hand, anything to keep his mind free of inappropriate thoughts about his charge.

Kael dipped four pieces of bread in the mixture and placed them all on the griddle. He thought two each would be more than enough for the two of them. He tied the bread up and put it away, then covered the whisked eggs away in the fridge.

He flipped the toast, and then grabbed the syrup, plates, and butter. Kael checked under them and felt they were done. He took them off the griddle and placed them on a plate.

“Breakfast is ready.”

“Good. I’m starving.”

Kael smiled to himself, keeping his head ducked so she wouldn’t see him smiling. Maya’s appetite was something to be seen. For a girl with no portion control, she didn’t seem to have an off bit of weight somewhere.

Maya plucked two of the toast off and placed some butter on them, then slathered them in syrup. Kael followed suit, doing a small amount of butter and syrup.

The two ate in silence, enjoying the food and the quiet. Kael liked that. Not every bit of space has to be filled with conversation. Most people didn’t get that at all.

He was glad Maya understood that.

Maya offered to do dishes, since Kael cooked. Kael handed the plates to her, and went upstairs to change into a fresh shirt and some jeans.

Kael pulled the shirt over his head, straightening the shirt on him. He then pulled on his pants, wriggling into them. After, he placed a belt on and hooked his firearm into the holster that wrapped around his waist and went under his shirt.

It was very easy access, which allowed him to draw quickly and take out the intruder quickly.

Kael pulled his shirt down over it, and hoped like hell he’d be able to avoid a gun fight in a civilian place. He went downstairs and found Maya slipping her boots on, sitting on the couch.

Kael found his shoes and pulled them on, tightening the laces. Maya pulled on her other shoe, and tied it off, too. They both stood at the same time. Maya covered her mouth, and giggled.

“It looks like we had the same idea for dressing today.”

Kael looked at her clothes and then his. They both had put on marron tops on, and dark jeans and boots. Kael blinked and looked up at her, who was giggling still.

They really had.

“Well, that’s another new thing for me.”

“Hmm? New for you? What do you mean, Kael?”

“It’s nothing important right now. I’ll tell you later, okay? Let’s get going, since it takes twenty minutes to get there from here.”

Maya nodded and tossed Kael the keys to the Impala, who caught them in mid-air. The two headed outside, and Kael unlocked the Impala. Maya climbed in on the passenger side, while Kael took the driver’s side.

Kael started the car, reeving the energy, and testing for any problems. After determining that there was no problems with the Impala, Kael back out and turned the car around to head to the zoo.

They encountered a bit of traffic when they were fifteen minutes out from the zoo. Maya groaned and closed her eyes.

Maya managed, after the groan, to make use of the auxiliary cord, and played some random music. Maya sang along to “Let It Go”, loudly and obnoxiously. Kael laughed at her, and set his head on the wheel as he did so.

After a few more rounds of singing, the traffic began to move, and they made it to Oatland. Kael hunted for a parking spot for twenty minutes, and found one near the entrance, in case they needed to leave quickly.

Maya scouted ahead, but kept in Kael’s sight, and waited for him when they got to the entrance. Kael pulled out the money and gave the man the correct amount for the two of them.

The man placed some bracelets on their wrists, and they entered the zoo. Maya gaped wordlessly, and turned in a three-sixty, looking at everything in her vicinity.

“Wow, it’s _huge_.”

Kael just smiled a small smile, and joined her. Maya’s eyes were open wide as she drank in her surroundings. She was like a child, so innocent.

This was something she should have had as a child. Her mother’s suicide ruined that. And the fact that her father worked too much to do things like this with her.

Kael walked over to a box and pulled a map from it, opening it as he rejoined Maya in the center. He held it in front of them, pointing.

“Okay, we’re here. We can either go left or right. Either way, we’ll end up back here.”

Maya looked at the map, and pointed to the left. Kael nodded and folded the map up, sticking it in his back right pocket.

“Alright, let’s go.”

Maya followed Kael’s lead, and they began their long walk. She stopped to look at the pandas, and leaned against the railing. A baby panda was walking along the ground.

“Do you like pandas, Maya?”

“Very much so.”

Maya turned to him, and looked around quickly, then pulled her shirt up and rolled her pants down a little, Kael turned red, and then looked closer without getting closer to her.

“Is that a panda tattoo?”

“Yes, and don’t tell my dad, when we see him again, please. I have a friend in a tattoo shop who offered to do it after hours. He’d kill me if he knew.”

Kael chuckled and stepped back, lacing his fingers together behind his head. Maya rolled her pants back up and pulled her shirt down.

“I didn’t take you for a bad girl, Maya. Getting an illegal tattoo? One step closer to being a hardened criminal.”

Maya started laughing, clutching her sides and leaning against the rail. Kael laughed with her, and leaned against the railing, too. They got a few stares, but the two were too busy laughing.

“I don’t think I’m at the status of a criminal yet, but thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Maya was quiet, letting her sides stop aching for a moment. She wondered if she should say something about the little boy from her dreams.

“You know who you remind me of, Kael?”

“Who?”

“You remind me of this boy I knew in my childhood. He had your personality, to say the least. He looked like you, too.”

“Really? Where have you seen this boy?”

“In my dreams. I’ve been dreaming about him lately. I can hardly understand why though.”

“Maybe your memories are trying to tell you something, Maya. Something the memories want you to remember.”

“Maybe. I’m not sure, though.”

Maya pushed off the railing, and offered her hand to him. Kael looked at her, then her hand, confused.

“You’ve been in that academy too long. You don’t want to lose me in this crowd, do you? Then we have to hold hands to prevent that.”

Kael took her hand in his, and her fingers laced between his, squeezing them with a smile. Kael felt his cheeks flush, and turned his head away from her, his hand rubbing the back of his head.

_Damn, what is wrong with me? Why is simply holding her hand making me all red like this?_

Maya led them through the crowd, checking out the different animals. Maya pointed them out in excitement, and Kael told her what they were at each one. He told her what they eat, too, and what their local terrain is.

“How do you know so much about animals, Kael?”

“In my line of work, I’ve got to know everything about every country. Never know when I’ll be sent on an undercover across the ocean. It’s best that I’m prepared.”

“But how do you keep them all straight?”

“I manage well. It’s what I’m trained to do.”

Maya smiled up at him, and was grateful for his knowledge. Most of the signs were blocked by people, as it was very crowded today.

Something flashed by in the corner of her eye, and she turned towards it. A man in black was staring at her, and she flinched. His stare was intense, unwavering.

_How long had he been there?_

“Kael…”

“Yes, Maya?”

“I think someone’s been following us.”

“What?”

Kael reached for his concealed weapon, but Maya placed her hand over his. She shook her head, and Kael relented. This was a public place. One misplaced shot, and he could accidently kill someone.

“It’s too crowded. You’ll hit someone.”

“What do you suggest we do, then?”

“Lose him in the crowd. If we move quickly, and lose him, we can get back to the Impala and get back to the house.”

“We’ll have to get our stuff and leave, Maya.”

“I know. I figured as much. If they found us here, they’ll find us there, too.”

Kael grabbed her hand and started weaving through the crowd quickly. Maya heard the exclamations of people as the man shoved them aside.

They ducked behind a sign, and the man ran past, completely missing them. The two took off back the way they’d came, and managed to get through the crowd.

Kael unlocked the Impala, and Maya got into the passenger seat, buckling up. Kael got into the driver’s seat, and slammed the key in, turning the car on. He backed out, and pressed on the gas.

They drove out of there, barely remaining under the speed limit. Kael had a death grip on the wheel, his knuckles white. He was angry that this happened, on his watch. How could he have missed a man following them through the zoo?

_Maybe you were distracted by your charge’s smile?_

Kael ignored that thought, more intent on getting them home to grab their stuff and go. The nearest safe house was in Augusta, and that was over a two hour drive from Savannah.

Kael turned the car in a wild arc, and parked the car, turning off the engine. Kael got out, with Maya following closely behind.

“Get all of your stuff, dirty, clean, doesn’t matter. Just toss it in your suitcase and zip it up. Be quick about it. I don’t know how long it’ll take whoever was following us to notice that we escaped.”

Maya took the stairs two at a time, and slammed her door open. She plucked her dirty clothes off the floor and shoved it into her bag, zipping it shut. She picked the suitcase up, and joined Kael downstairs, who was ready.

“Let’s go. I’ll call the director on the way up to Augusta and let her know that the Savannah safe house is blown.”

Kael had the food they’d bought recently in his hands, and they headed out together. Kael handed Maya the keys, and she popped the trunk. Kael placed the food and both bags in there, and slammed the lid shut.

Maya tossed him the keys, and got into the passenger seat. Kael climbed in and started the car as Maya got buckled. Kael did a three-sixty and went down the opposite way they’d came.

He hooked the Bluetooth device into his ear, and had Maya call the Director. It rang and rang before she picked up her phone.

“Hello?”

“Director Banks, we’re blown. The Savannah safe house is blown. I think the RGI is after Maya. We’re heading to the Augusta safe house. Is anyone occupying it?”

“Only Kelli and her charge are at the moment. I’ll call Kelli and inform her that you are on your way to Augusta. I’ll let her know that your cover was blown in Savannah and that the Savannah safe house is blown.”

“Thank you, ma’am.”

“Just get Maya there safely and swiftly!”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Maya hung up with the Director and yanked off the Bluetooth device, tossing it in the back of the Impala. He was angry, yes, but he was also terrified for Maya.

“We’ll be meeting Kelli and her charge at the safe house in Augusta in over two hours’ time. With Kelli and me there with you and Roxi, there’ll be double the man power and martial arts training.”

“Ok.”

Despite the craziness, Maya was calm, like this was normal. It shouldn’t have been normal to her, but Kael had no control over it. This is what was happening, and right now his only concern was getting Maya to safety.

“Get some sleep. It’s gonna be a long ride.”

Maya didn’t protest with him, as she was already falling asleep in the seat. She’d reclined it back, and was snoring softly. Kael turned his gaze back to the road, and he squeezed the wheel again, feeling the anger surge again in him.

Traffic wasn’t super chaotic, and Kael was in the city limits of Augusta. Kael turned right at the first street, and then a left two streets over. He continued down the street until he found a sort of run down house.

Kael pulled into the garage, grateful for the coverage. Kael turned off the car and climbed out, popping the trunk. He opened Maya’s door and lifted her in his arms, not wanting to wake her to this nightmare.

“It’s been a while, Kael.”

Kelli stood by the door, her arms crossed. Kael didn’t answer her, and continued on past her, Maya fast asleep in his arms. He didn’t want a row with her right now. That would’ve been too much.

“Our stuff is in the trunk. And I brought some food we’d bought earlier this week. It’s still fresh. We all might find some use for it.”

Kelli nodded, and walked over to the Impala, pulling out Maya’s suitcase, his duffle bag, and the bags of food. Kael reached the living room and set Maya on the couch.

“Where’s Roxi?”

“She’s upstairs, sulking like a baby because of a new comer. She’d liked it when it was just us. But now you’re here, and she’s not happy about it at all.”

“Well, it was last minute. Not much could’ve been done about it. It was in the heat of the moment. We had to hurry.”

Maya stirred, yawning, and rolled over onto her side, snoring softly. Kael sat on the floor next to her, running his fingers through his hair. Kelli dropped his bag onto the floor, and placed Maya’s down gently. She disappeared into the kitchen, and opened the fridge, placing the food inside.

“What happened, Kael?”

“Some guy was following us in the zoo today. Maya had wanted to get out of the safe house. We’d be holed up in there for three days already. I indulged her, and wasn’t really paying attention until she said that someone was following us. And with the other shit that has happened, I made the best decision was to get Maya out of there.”

“What other shit?”

“Someone attacked Maya and nearly slit her throat. That’s the reason we ended up in Savannah in the first place. And then someone cut the tires on the Impala out there. And then, in the same day as the Impala incident, someone put something in Maya’s shampoo and she almost lost her right eye. RGI is after Maya. She found the bio-terrorism weapon that her father was supposed to talk about in Jordan. He was kidnapped, and I think he might not be talking.”

“And since he’s not talking, the RGI might be trying to get Maya so they can threaten him with her life or try to get her to tell them where the weapon is.”

“Exactly.”

Kelli ran her fingers through her hair, and turned away from him. Kael rested his hands on his knees, watching her turn away from him. They’d had a bad past, mixed business and pleasure.

And someone’s life was stolen because of it.

Kelli liked to blame him for what happened two years ago, but Kael told her time and again that it was her fault just as much as it was his. They caused the problem, and cost someone their life, and that was the consequences they had to live with.

But she’d rather blame him and pretend that she didn’t do anything.

He wasn’t going to bring it up. Now wasn’t the time. Kael didn’t want to give her a reason to boot them out and to another safe house, which was in Louisiana. That was a couple days’ drive, and Kael wasn’t up to making that trip.

He scooted up against the couch, and gently tucked Maya’s hair behind her ear. Kelli stood with her arms crossed, eyes narrowed.

“Are you mixing pleasure and business, Kael? The last time someone did that, a person died. Remember that, Kael?”

“Yes, Kelli, I do. And I regret the choices I made. I regret them every day since.”

“So, what is she to you? A charge? A toy? Or both?”

“Stop it, Kelli. She’s only my charge. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“Nothing less my ass. Kael, you’ve never gotten close to any of the people you’ve protected. What’s so special about her?”

“That’s none of your business, Kelli. Why don’t you butt out and deal with your charge who I noticed was attempting to leave the house by the window upstairs?”

“What? ROXI! Don’t you dare leave this house! You know that you cannot leave without me!”

Kelli turned her attention from Kael to Roxi, and darted upstairs, shouting at the girl. Kael let out a sigh of relief. He was glad she was gone. They had a strained relationship, and being in the same room was difficult.

Kael settled himself on the floor, pillow only, and went to sleep next to the couch. He didn’t want to leave Maya alone, in case something happened.

_ “Maya, wake up.” _

_ She groaned and rolled away from the voice. She didn’t want to wake up. She just wanted to sleep. That’s all. _

_ “Maya, baby. Please wake up, my papaya. I have something to tell you.” _

_ Maya groaned and sat up, rubbing her eyes. _

_ “What is it, mom?” _

_ “They’ll find you again. It’s only a matter of time. They’ll find you, and put Kelli and her charge at risk, as well as you and Kael.” _

_ Maya felt her heart slam into her throat. They’d just left Savannah. How would they find her again? Nothing can be used to track her except following her and a GPS… _

Maya gasped, and sat up. She pulled her knees up to her chest, her fingers in her hair. What was her mother trying to tell her?

_They’ll find you again_.

Maya knew that they would eventually, so why was it so important that they would? Maya had no idea, and hoped she could figure it out before they came for her again.

Maya had a vague idea why the RGI was trying to kidnap her. She knew where the bio-terrorism weapon is, and she could tell them. It’s also possible that her father is refusing to tell them where it is and they want to use her as a bargaining chip.

Maya looked down and found Kael sitting there, fast asleep. She had no idea how he could sleep like that, but he seemed okay. She laid back down and watched him, breathing softly.

She wanted to touch him suddenly. She had no idea why she wanted to, but it was a familiar feeling. Maya reached out and ran her fingers over his hair, lightly, so not to wake him.

_It’s soft, like feathers._

Maya smiled, and continued touching his hair. He stirred, and she jerked her hand back, fearing that he’d wake up and think she was a complete psycho.

Kael mumbled something and went back to sleep. Without a word, Maya tried to sleep again, her need satisfied, and she was fast asleep in minutes, the world going away.

Even for a little while.

Kael woke up at six-thirty and rubbed his eyes, sitting up slightly. Maya was asleep, her eyes closed, and she snored still. No surprise there at all.

Kael smiled and stood up, stretching and cracking his back. He headed upstairs, and into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. Kael splashed water onto his face, running his wet fingers through his hair, slicking it back.

He left the bathroom and walked up to Kelli’s door, knocking. She opened the door, wearing only a tank top and shorts. She leaned against the frame, crossing her arms.

“What do you want?”

“I think the question is _what do you want_ , Kelli?”

Kelli looked up at him and then grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling him down to her height.

“I hate you.”

“Back at you.”

Her mouth pressed against his, and she pulled him into the bedroom, shutting the door with an audible click, the locking turning behind him.

Maya awoke when sunlight blinded her. Groaning, she sat up, rubbing her eyes and blinking to help her adjust to the sudden change in light. Once her sight cleared, she saw Kael at the table, in a different shirt from the night prior. He had different pants on, too. He must’ve taken a shower and changed.

She got up and walked over to join him. Maya pulled the chair out and took a seat. As she did so, she noticed a hickey on his throat. She stiffened and stared, felling a wave of unexplainable jealously hit her.

She knew a hickey when she saw one, and it made her jealous.

_Why am I getting jealous? He’s just my security guard, someone protecting me from the RGI. I don’t care if someone gave him a hickey. I’m not his girlfriend. I’m just his charge._

That’s right. She’s his charge, someone who is his responsibility until she can safely return to Tampa and leave this whole mess behind her forever.

But why did she feel so hurt then?

Kelli came out from the kitchen and handed Maya a cup of tea. Maya blew on it to cool it.

“I hear you’ve had a rough journey. I know it sucks, but you’ve gotta keep your head up. It’s the only way to make it through your solitary confinement.”

“Solitary confinement my ass. At least you can leave solitary if you’re on good behavior. This is solitary, period.”

“Roxi, stop it. That language is not needed at the table.”

Roxi was fourteen, with a deep purple highlight in her hair, and she was chewing bubblegum, blowing bubbles and popping them. She chewed obnoxiously, and sat with her legs up.

“Hi, Roxi, I’m Maya.”

“I know who you are. And I can’t wait for you to be gone from here.”

“Roxi! That’s not a nice thing to say! You better apologize to her right this minute!”

“Kelli, it’s quite all right. She didn’t mean nothing by it.”

“Still! It’s not right say mean things to you!”

“Kelli, she’s fourteen. She’s in that stage of “I don’t care about anyone.” She doesn’t care about anyone, and whose feelings she hurts.”

“She should!”

“Unfortunately, she doesn’t right now. But I’m sure she’ll grow up and learn that being mean gets you nowhere.”

Roxi huffed and stomped away to the bedroom upstairs, and slammed the door shut. Kelli sighed, and rubbed her eyes. She then proceeded to crack her neck.

Maya got a glimpsed of her neck and felt sick all of a sudden.

Kelli had hickies over her neck, too. Maya felt a little bit more hurt as her heart shattered a little bit more. Maya couldn’t believe it.

_Did Kelli and Kael have sex? It’s not like I care, but from their stony faces this morning, she was so damn sure they hated each other. So, why have sex if you hate each other?_

Maya didn’t understand it at all.

But she felt the rearing snake of jealous come back, and Maya smashed it down, hoping that if she keeps it deep down, it’ll stay there.

She was upset with him because of this development, but she hid it, hoping to keep him from asking questions about why she was looking this way.

Maya turned the TV on and watched the news, unblinking. She wasn’t paying any attention to the news at all. Her mind was still on Kelli and Kael, about the fact that they had sex.

Maya clutched her hands in front of her chest, over her heart, and took a deep breath. She didn’t understand why she cared so much.

Other people she knew had sex before, and she didn’t care then. So why give a fuck now? Why is she so damn concerned about them hooking up?

_Maybe you’ve got some feelings for him?_

Maya shook her head, dispelling that thought from her head immediately. That was ridiculous! She didn’t like Kael like that. Hell, she hadn’t known him until earlier this week.

_I don’t like him. He’s just the help, like the cook and the maid._

That statement felt like a total lie.

Kael watched Maya from the kitchen, drying the plate in his hands. Kelli was next to him, washing another plate. He took the dry plate in his hand and placed it up in the cupboard.

“It’s nice to have someone else help me with the dishes. I try to get Roxi to help me, but she’s stubborn as hell and refuses to help me. I can’t believe I got stuck with this mission.”

“Why are you protecting Roxi, anyway?”

“Her dad is in the Navy, and she witnessed a man killed her mom. He looked a lot like her dad, and the neighbors claim that they saw him leave the house. The problem is that her dad was away, out on ship patrolling the waters near Africa.”

“That must’ve been hard on her.”

“Yeah. Her father insisted on having her being put under protection. You can see why she’s a little pissed. She had to leave Boston, her friends, her family. All because some man who knew where she lived could come back if he found out that she witnessed her mother’s murder. It’s not a good mix.”

“And you’ve been here in Augusta how long?”

“About a month, I’d say. We’ve been here awhile. Roxi is getting sick of being stuck in the house all the time. But I can’t risk going somewhere unless it’s majorly important.”

“I feel the same way, and after what happened in Savannah, I don’t think I can even dare risk leaving the house again.”

Kelli handed a plate to him, and the two fell into silence again. Kael dried the plate, his gaze still on Maya. She hadn’t spoken once this morning. She might be tired. It was a long drive up here, and she’d been up for a few hours the night before.

_She might be upset_.

Could she? He wasn’t sure what she could be upset about. Did he do something to upset her? He doubt it. If he did, she’d be vocal about it.

Maya would tell him.

His throat throbbed where Kelli had left a hickie on his throat during their wild coupling this morning. This job was hard, and sometimes lonely. There were agents who slept with other agents on occasion, just to not feel lonely for a while.

But Kael and Kelli had something more a few years ago. He doubt it was love, but it was something that resembled it. It’d been great, until their joint charge died. And they couldn’t bear to look at each other.

They’d gotten past that now, but Kelli still blamed him when she had one too many shots of vodka. They have strictly no strings attach relationship, and it would stay that way.

He wasn’t jeopardizing other one of his charge’s life just for a little sex. He wouldn’t risk Kelli’s charges, either. They were around death too much, and more wouldn’t do them any good.

A wild coupling every once in a while was nice. She’d gotten a few new tattoos, and a dermal piercing in her lower back.

Kael knew he’d never been in love with Kelli. She knew that, too. They had wanted love, but didn’t find it with each other. Years later, they still hadn’t found it.

They finished the dishes and Kelli went upstairs, knocking on the door to Roxi’s room before entering. Kael was left with Maya, who was staring at the TV.

He sat down and leaned on his hand, watching the TV, uninterested. Maya didn’t move too much, except for her legs to allow for circulation to flow in her legs.

“Maya?”

“Hmmm?”

Her blue eyed gaze turned to him, turning her head slightly. Kael lost his train of thought as those blue eyes from his childhood brought him back there, remembering how much better everything was.

He tore his gaze away, and looked back to the TV.

“Never mind. It’s not important.”

“Okay.”

She shrugged and returned her gaze to the TV. Kael let out a slight breath, and closed his eyes. He’d completely blanked out when she looked at him.

This was really new. Even newer then wearing matching clothing, or her making him laugh, or her making him smile.

Where the hell was his mind going? It definitely was veering off course, and that wasn’t okay. If he kept on this road, someone could die.

And he didn’t want that.

He needed to get his mind off of this, now. Anything would do. Anything at all.

Kael stood, and walked over to the stairs, taking them two at a time. Kelli was just leaving Roxi’s room. Kael grabbed her elbow and led her down the hall, out of sight of the living room, of Maya.

“Kael, what is it? What on Earth do you need?”

“I’ve been without sex for too long, Kelli. And this morning does not count. If anything, it’s been the same for you, too.”

She didn’t answer for a moment, then dragged him over to her room, pushing the door open. Kelli pulled him inside and shut the door, locking it.

Kael took both of her wrists in his hand, pushing her against the door and pining them over her head. His mouth found hers, and pushed it open with his tongue.

Kelli openingly moaned and wriggled her hands under his hand. Kael released her, and pulled her top over her head, tossing it on the floor.

Maya watched them walk away, and felt her throat clench tightly. She wasn't jealous. She wasn’t. Why would she be? She wasn’t his girlfriend.

“You look like someone ran over your cat.”

Roxi leaned on the railing of the stairs, her arms crossed over each other. Maya rubbed her eyes, sighing softly. Was she really gonna confess how she felt right now?

“I just feel like shit, that’s all.”

“Don’t we all? I’ve got something that might make you feel better.”

Maya watched as she came down the stairs and joined her on the couch. Roxi looked around, and then pulled out a bag of weed, already rolled up in a joint.

“Where did you get weed?”

“My drug dealer in Boston knew a guy here. Gave him my contact information. He hooks me up with weed on the DL. I don’t have any money, so we’ve got a deal going that he’ll give me the weed for free if I give him a BJ every time.”

“You’re fourteen!”

“Pfft… I don’t give a fuck. I was giving handjobs and BJs long before I got here. Maybe not in exchange for drugs, but still. Anyway, do you want some or not?”

Maya looked down at the baggie and, in a fuck it all moment, she decided why the fuck not? Her dad wasn’t here to stop her, and Kael was upstairs fucking Kelli.

Plus she really wanted to get out of her head for a while.

“Yes.”

Kael pressed his mouth against hers, and lifted her off the floor. Her legs went around his waist, and he pressed his growing erection against her. She moaned louder, and grabbed the edge of his shirt, pulling it off.

“Fuck me, Kael, now.”

Kael couldn’t wait either, and pulled the condom out of his pocket, taking it between his teeth for a moment. He undid his belt, and the button on his jeans. Kael slid the zipper down and wiggled out of his jeans. He then worked his boxers off.

 Kelli wiggled out of her tights, and Kael pulled off her panties, dropping them on her pile of clothes.

Maya inhaled the smoke, and then held it in her mouth for a moment, letting the drug seep into her system. She released it, then. She closed her eyes, and leaned back against the couch.

“I told you it was good.”

“I don’t deny that.”

Roxi took the blunt from her and took a hit, blowing the smoke into the air. Roxi had open the window behind the couch, which allowed the smoke to escape on the weak Georgia breeze.

She’d taken a vow in the fifth grade with D.A.R.E to never do drugs or drink alcohol. And now here she was, twelve years later, smoking weed for the first time in her life.

She’d broken her vow, and not even given a damn.

Kael ripped the condom wrapper open with his teeth, and Kelli rolled it over him. Her pupils were dilated, and her nipples were perky. Kael smirked and then grabbed her hips, turning away from the door.

“Hey, where are we going?”

“Just trust me, okay?”

Maya let Roxi keep the joint and laid down on the couch, feeling hazy and slow.

She was definitely out of her mind. She didn’t think about her dad, or her mom, or how Kael was fucking that Kelli bitch right now.

Kael and Kelli laid on the bed, each covered in sweat. Kelli got off the bed first, and gather her clothes in her arms. Kael stayed back on the bed, too comfortable to even move.

He’d been sleeping on a couch for almost a week now.

“I’m gonna shower first. That okay with you?”

“Yeah. Are you gonna check on the girls while I shower?”

“Yeah.”

Kael nodded, and ran his fingers through his hair, standing up to pick up his clothes from the floor. Kael didn’t really have any regrets sleeping with Kelli.

But today he felt a little ache in his chest. It’s like someone punched him. Kael didn’t like the feeling at all.

Kelli took a quick shower, and came out in a flash of steam, and tied her hair up off her neck. Kael took his clothes into the bathroom, and left the door open.

They’d seen each other naked more than enough times that it wasn’t awkward anymore between them.

“I’m going to check on the girls. Don’t be too long.”

“I’ll be quick.”

Kelli opened the door and left, shutting it tightly behind her. Kael turned the water on and climbed it, letting the cool water run over his skin.

“Shit, someone’s coming. Give me the joint!”

Roxi took the joint from her and put it out under her boot, the swept it into the baggie. Roxi shoved it into her pocket and disappeared to the kitchen. Maya was too buzzed to even consider moving.

Maya had wondered why people liked recreational drugs so much, but now she knew. It felt so good that you forgot about the problems in your life for a little while.

“You girls okay?”

“We’re fine, Kelli.”

“Why does it smell like smoke?”

“I burned some mac and cheese. I’m trying to fan it out through this window over here.”

Maya just laid down on the couch, feeling like a bird, flying free. Being high was a new experience, and Maya was loving every minute of it. She wasn’t concerned about the threat to her life, or her father’s life, or the fact that Kael will be very pissed at her for doing this.

But she just didn’t care.

Kael finished towel drying his hair, and slide the towel over the towel bar. He pulled his clothes back on and left Kelli’s room, turning the lights off.

“Why the hell does it smell like smoke?”

“Roxi burned some mac and cheese. It’s fine.”

Kael walked down the stairs and peeked at the couch. Maya looked like she was almost asleep, but she was wide eyed and unfocused.

“Maya?”

Kael walked over to her, and knelt in front of her. Her eyes were completely bloodshot. Kael checked her pulse, and it was 136 beats per minute. That was much too high.

“Where’s Roxi?”

“She’s in the kitchen, cleaning up the mess she made. Why?”

“Can you bring her out here?”

“Sure. Roxi! Can you come here?”

Roxi walked out from the kitchen, drying her hands on a towel. She may not have looked it, but she was definitely high.

“What did you give her?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Kael. I didn’t give anyone anything.”

“I’m talking about Maya! Her eyes are completely bloodshot, and her pulse rate is much too fast!”

“That sounds like she’s high on marijuana.”

Roxi’s gaze moved between the two agents, and her hand pressed against her left pocket. Kael looked over to Kelli, and he shoved his left hand in his left pocket, then leaned his head towards Roxi.

Kelli nodded, and stood slowly, walking towards the kitchen. Roxi looked frightened, and she bolted to the left, which was a stupid choice.

Kelli grabbed her and had her in a light chokehold, her left hand digging into Roxi’s left pocket. She pulled out a baggie and tossed to Kael, keeping her grip steady on Roxi.

Kael unrolled it and sighed. It was as he suspected. Roxi had given Maya weed.

“I can’t believe you, Roxi! Why did you let her smoke up? It’s not something we can do in the house! Someone would notice the smoke!”

“She looked upset, and I offered it to her. I swear, I just wanted to make her feel better, you know? I didn’t think Kael would be so angry.”

“You’re damn right I’m angry. Maya has never done drugs before! What if she had overdosed?! So many things could have gone wrong!”

“I’m sorry, Kael. I really am! I’d been such a brat lately, I thought I’d try some form of peace offering. She wouldn’t have taken it otherwise! I swear, though, I didn’t even get that far when she said yes.”

Kael scowled, and tossed her baggie into the trash. Roxi groaned softly. Kelli gave her a complete look of disappointment.

“Go to your room, Roxi. I’ll think of something suitable as punishment. Just go for now.”

Roxi hung her head in shame, fat dollops of tears running down her cheeks. Kael knelt next to Maya, and checked her pulse again. It was still rapid, but not as much as before.

“I really hope she doesn’t develop an addiction because of this. Addictions are hard to break.”

“I know they are. I’ve known you for a long time, Kael.”

Kael’s past was a messed up one. It was one that almost got him killed. He hated the memories, and the black outs. He hated them all.

He’d gladly forget them. He’d give anything to not remember them.

Maya groaned and rubbed her temples. She felt horrible, like she’d crashed in an airplane.  She felt like a freight train had hit her.

“Ow….”

“And that, Maya, is called a crash.”

Maya moaned and covered her head, trying to block out Kelli’s voice. She remembered the weed from the night prior. Obviously, she’d finally came down on the train to reality.

“I have some tea, if you’d like it.”

“I appreciate it.”

Maya sat up slowly, and took the cup from Kelli’s hands. A blanket slipped off her shoulder, and Maya sipped the tea, scalding her mouth and tongue.

“You started shivering from the start of the crash around four this morning. You were begging for it to end, just so you could rest.”

“I am never touching drugs again.”

“I thought so. I hope this be a lesson to you about drugs, Maya. They are not good, and lead to a nasty crash when you start to crave more.”

Maya finished her tea and set the cup down, then she collapsed back onto the couch. Kelli sighed, and turned the TV off. She decided to leave her alone, since she needed the rest.

Kael came back downstairs a minute later. He turned his gaze to Maya, watching her sleep.

“How is she?”

“She’s still a bit out of it. Barely answered anything I asked or did anything. I gave her some tea, and she drank it all. She drank a full cup of tea, without waiting for it to cool down. She was thirsty. And then she went back to sleep.”

Kael nodded and covered her with the blanket again. He joined Kelli at the table, and she had a cup between her hands.

“Roxi feels really bad, you know. She’s hoping to make it right somehow.”

“Maya doesn’t hold grudges over things like this. She’s free to apologize once Maya can actually hold an intelligent conversation without falling asleep again.”

“I’ll let her know. And she’s also upset that you might be mad at her for causing this.”

“I was angry with her last night, but I think I’m just upset now over it.”

Kael nodded and covered his eyes, sighing softly. Since Maya is his charge, he felt some sort of responsibility for leaving her alone when she was upset about something. He left her to have a no strings attached romp session.

This was how the last charge they’d shared died.

Kael did not want a repeat of a few years ago. The wound was still open, and thinking about it rubbed salt into the wound.

“You think she’ll be okay?”

“I think so. She’s not my charge and she’s not my responsibility.”

Kael nodded and then stood, walking into the kitchen to get a cup of coffee. He needed one, after the last two days especially.

Maya awoke with much less of a headache than she did hours ago. She felt a hell of a lot better, and less like she’d taken a sleeping pill.

“Morning, sunshine.”

Kael was sitting in a chair, facing the TV, His fingers mused through his hair, and for a moment, she felt grateful for her family and friends. They helped her through everything.

“Have you heard from Director Banks since we left?”

“I called her on the way up, but nothing since.”

 Maya nodded and laid down on her back, staring up at the ceiling. She felt horrible about last night, letting a drug influence her.

Maya closed her eyes and imagined the look on their faces when they discovered that they were gone. She was sure that the man was pissed.

“Roxi feels bad for last night’s fiasco. She wishes it hadn’t gone as far as it did.”

“It’s fine. I don’t need an apology for what happened. I made the decision to get high on weed. Tell her it is okay and to go about her day.”

“Okay, I will now.”

Kael took another sip of his coffee, and sat back in his chair. They’d been through a lot recently. It had been one thing after another, and Kael was worried for Maya’s safety.

He cared about Maya like a big brother would. Although he’d felt that way for years, this feeling felt the same and different.

He didn’t know why it felt that way. But it did anyway.

He wondered vaguely if Maya felt the same way as he did. He wasn’t sure, though. She wouldn’t tell him, that’s for sure.

He’d have to find out about her in different means and ways. He hoped someone Maya knew could allow him to get into Maya’s head.

Not physically, entirely, but like her personality and her qualms. Someone had to know this something about her.

He want to find the best way to get into Maya’s head, to find out what made her tick.

Maya walked upstairs to Roxi’s room, and knocked on the door. It opened a few inches, and Maya took it as an invite.

“Roxi, hey, I wanted to tell you that I’m not upset with you about-“

“Help-“

“Shut up! Both of you, shut up!”

The man held a gun to Roxi’s head. The window behind her was open, and Maya noticed that there was a fire escape behind the building.

_That’s how he got in_.

“You, Caparelli, are coming with me. I’ll release the girl if you agree to come with me.”

Maya swallowed, and nodded. She headed for the desk, and clipped the corner with her hip. Maya cursed, and leaned against the desk for a moment as her hip throbbed.

A picture had fallen, the glass shattering over the floor. It gave Maya an idea.

“What are you doing? Come on!”

“I dropped something. Can I have a moment to find it?”

“Fine, but be quick!”

She knelt on the floor, and picked up a large piece of glass. Maya stood slowly, the glass cutting into the palm of her hand slightly.

“I found it.”

“Good! Now get out that window.”

“Can I ask how you found me? You are obviously a member of RGI. So, how did you find me?”

“It’s easy when someone slips a GPS tracking device into your luggage.”

“Thanks. That’s all I needed to know.”

Maya turned and shoved the glass up through his throat and out his back. He gagged and went slack, releasing Roxi from his grip.

“Let’s go.”

Maya grabbed Roxi and they headed downstairs quickly, taking the steps two at a time. Maya didn’t think about much, except to get Roxi to safety.

“Maya, you’re covered in blood!”

Maya didn’t care. Now wasn’t the time to be worried about the fact that she was covered in blood. Their safety was important.

“Kael! We’ve got to leave. Kelli and Roxi, too.”

“Maya, what’s going on? You’re covered in blood!”

“I went upstairs and found some guy holding a gun to Roxi’s head. I had to kill him. I had no choice. But that’s not important right now. There’s a GPS device in my luggage. That’s how they found me.”

“That means this house is blown. Fuck. Okay, Roxi, get your stuff together. Maya, go clean up in the kitchen. I’m going to find that GPS.”

“I’ll split the food in the fridge between us. We’ve got some coolers.”

Kael nodded and head upstairs, finding Maya’s luggage in the room Kelli had picked for her. It was no use for her now.

Kael laid the luggage on the side and opened it, her removed her clothes quickly and neatly as he could, then ripped the fabric.

Under all her clothes and the inside of her luggage was a blinking device. It looked like it could also be a microphone, too.

Kael picked it up and stood, walking over by the window. He opened the window and tossed the GPS into the grass beside the house.

He had to get them off their trail. This was the only way. Kael put Maya’s clothes back into the luggage and zipped it up, taking it downstairs.

They’d only been there two days, and they’d put Kelli and Roxi in danger.

“I tossed the GPS outside. As far as they know, you moved a few feet and stopped.”

Maya was standing by the door, her arms wrapped around her waist. Roxi was with Kelli by the kitchen, and she checking her over for any wounds.

“Maya and I are going to have to get a hotel. We can’t stay in the safe houses. We have no idea if the RGI have all the locations of the safe houses. Kelli, you guys might be better off crossing a border. It’d be safer, to be honest with you.”

“I was thinking so, too. We’re going to cross into Canada. Mexico’s too dangerous.”

Maya walked over and bit her lip, rubbing her arm. Kael touched her shoulder and she leaned against his side, gladly accepting his support.

“I’m so sorry, Kelli, Roxi. I put you in danger. If I’d known sooner about the GPS, then I could’ve taken care of it before we arrived here. And I killed a man. What are we going to do about that?”

“I’ll take care of it. We’ll drive it out to the middle of nowhere and bury it deep. Only way this will stay a secret.”

“Thank you, Kelli.”

As much as Maya wasn’t Kelli’s biggest fan, she accepted the hug offered by Kelli. In that small moment, Maya didn’t feel that Kelli was a threat between her and Kael.

“We should get going. I’ll call Banks on the way up to deal with the body and let her know what went down here.”

“Can you let her know that I’ll call once we’re in a safe spot?”

“I will.”

Kael picked up his duffle and Maya’s luggage. Maya grabbed their set of groceries, and headed for the door. Roxi opened the door for them, and Kael set down the bags, pulling his keys out.

He pressed the key into the trunk and unlocked it, lifting the lid. Maya placed the bags of groceries in, then opened the passenger door, and climbed in.

Kael placed their bags in with the groceries, and shut the lid, locking it again. He unlocked the front door and climbed in, and put the key into the ignition.

He turned the car on and backed out of the driveway, heading for the I-95. Maya sat in the seat quietly, playing with the hem of her shirt.

“Where are we heading?”

“Well, we are heading up the 95, and then we’re turning on 21. We’ll head as far as Rincon for tonight, and tomorrow we’ll figure out our next move, and then head out.”

“Okay.”

Maya turned slightly and stared out the window. She seemed in a state of shock from killing that man back at the safe house.

Kael remembers the first time he’d killed someone. It’d been a sixteen year old girl with a bomb around her waist. She’d been a suicide bomber in Yemen. It was one of his practice missions.

He’d shot her in the head and drove to catch the trigger switch that she’d been holding. After he did that, he got an up close view of what he’d done, and Kael had thrown up.

It’d been a horrible experience. Sometimes he felt like crap just thinking about it. And sometimes he felt like crap just from being reminded of it.

Kael wished he had some drugs now. Anything for some peace and quiet.


	5. Chapter 5

Kael pulled into the B & B on North Columbia Avenue, and put the car in park, turning it off. Maya and Kael climbed out in almost synch. Kael opened the trunk and gave Maya her luggage and the food. Kael grabbed his duffle bag and the two went to the front desk.

“I’d like a room for the night.”

“Of course, sir. It’ll be $150 for the night. If you wish to stay a little longer, then you’ll have to pay more for the other nights. Your room is on the second floor, to the left. It should be the very first on the left.”

Kael nodded and handed her the money. She handed him the room key and disappeared again. They walked over to the elevator and pressed the up button. The elevator opened about after ten minutes later.

Kael and Maya climbed into together and he pressed the third floor button. Elevator music came on and Maya groaned internally. She hated elevator music. She wished it wouldn’t play.

Kael seemed content, neither caring nor wanting to care. She looked up at him, and bit her lip. Kael is her advisor. And that’s it’s. They could never be anything more or anything less.

But she wondered if Kael had feelings for her, too.

She was curious about that, but she wouldn’t push him to tell her. He’d tell her when he was ready.

And she would tell him if she was ready.

Kael could feel Maya watching him, but he didn’t address it. She wasn’t doing anything wrong, or bothering him. And he kind of liked the attention.

The doors opened, and Kael led them out, finding their room easily. He opened the door and allowed Maya in first. He followed in after her, noted the security cameras, and then closed the door.

Kael locked the door and took his stuff down the small corridor. He dropped his luggage on the floor, then collapsed on bed, and kicked his shoes off wearily.

It had been so long since he slept in a proper bed.

Maya put the food away in the mini fridge, still in the bag. He said they’d move on tomorrow. So she didn’t bother taking it out of the bag.

She stood and slid her shoes off, then collapsed on the bed next to his. In a few minutes, they were both out, curled up in a ball facing each other.

Kael woke up, and it was dark out. They’d left the lamps on in their lack of sleep deprivation. The last week alone had been crazy, and now they had bigger problems.

Getting away from Savannah was one of those problems. It wouldn’t take them long to realize that Maya had gotten away again and killed one of their men.

That was a lethal combination.

Kale laid back down, watching Maya breath quietly. As he watched her, his heart skipped a beat as her position shifted, and her tongue flicked out between her lips, licking them.

Kael shuddered, and closed his eyes. He wasn’t sure why he wanted more with Maya than as a friend. It was a new feeling, and he wasn’t sure who he could turn to in a situation like this.

Maya shifted in her sleep, and bit her lip, rolling onto her back. Kael closed his eyes and rolled to his right, away from her.

Kael wasn’t sure what his feelings were, but if he knew anything about his feelings about people, he’d know sooner or later. He’d have his answer eventually.

Maya rubbed her eyes, and sat up slowly. She felt like she’d gone to bed drunk, and woken up with a hangover. She had the worst headache in history, and was hating the sunlight right now.

Letting out a groan, Maya crashed back onto the bed, turned away from the window. She just wanted to sleep, and let the headache go away.

“Maya, get up. We’ve got to decide our next move.”

She groaned, but sat up as Kael unfolded a large map on the small, square table. She swung her legs off the bed and stumbled over, bracing her hands on the table to keep from falling over.

“Careful.”

Kael smoothed the map out and then placed a small rock on Rincon.

“I’d suggest staying here, but we’re still too close to Savannah and Augusta. I was thinking we could cross into South Carolina, and head to Sumter. We could the 95 to the 521 and straight to Sumter, but we’d past back right through Savannah, which isn’t an option.”

“Okay, so route 95 to 521 through Savannah is out. What else is there?”

“We could take 21 up to 119. Then 119 to 321, which will take us to 641. 641 will take us to 217, and then to 61. Route 61 will take us back to 95 and onto 521. But that’s 162 miles we’d have to get done by nightfall, or we’ll have to crash in another hotel and continue in the morning.”

“Okay, that’s too long of a route. What else?”

“Our last option is 154 miles, and it takes two hours and thirty minutes to get to Sumter. We take 21 up to 119, and then 119 to 321. 321 would take us to 462, and that would take us to 95. And then to Sumter on 521. That’s our best option. It is two hours and thirty minutes, which is easy. It also won’t take us through Savannah.”

“Let’s do that, then.”

“Okay. Let’s go. It’s a long drive and we really do need to get out of here now.”

Maya nodded and turned to her luggage. She hadn’t bothered unpacking it. They were only going to be here for a night.

There’d been no point in it.

Kael took the room key back to the front desk, and the two walked to the car, opening the trunk. He dropped his duffle bag in, and Maya dropped hers in beside his. Kael opened his door and reached across the seat, unlocking her door.

She climbed in and buckled up, moving her hair over her shoulder to keep it from getting caught. Kael buckled up, too, and started the car, backing out of the parking lot and leaving.

“Maya, you may not like the idea of this, but maybe we should cut your hair short.”

Maya made a horrified look in the window’s glass, grimacing. She didn’t like the idea of cutting her hair. He’d been right on that count.

“I know you possibly don’t want to, but if your hair is short, then anyone who grabs you might have a hard time trying to keep a grip. It’ll allow you to escape.”

She looked out the window, contemplating whether she wanted short hair for a few months or risk her life. It was a tough choice to make. If Kael was her, he’d have trouble deciding, too.

“Fine. But only if you get someone who understands how a female’s hair works! I don’t want to go around looking like a boy for the next month or so.”

“I know someone who’s great at this. He’s a masterpiece, I’ll tell you. You might like him.”

_Him?_

“Wait, your contact is a he?”

“Well, I mean _her_. Rachael is a boy, but she identifies as a female. I’ve known her since we were in middle school. She’s an absolute sweetheart. Her boyfriend adores her.”

Maya knew a lot of gay people, most of them from middle school. She’d never known anyone transgender, or at least hadn’t noticed a difference between them at all.

“Well, if you trust her, then I will, too.”

“That’s the spirit.”

Maya giggled and then turned back to the window, resting her head on her arm, watching the scenery race by, not a single care in the world for any of it.

It was peaceful not to think for a while.

Maya fell asleep like that, two hours later, her breathing simple and easy, quiet. Kael continued driving, hoping to get the thirty minute drive done before she woke up again.

They were on the 95 now, and would be approaching 521 soon. Kael knew of the construction on the road, but he hoped they were finishing for lunch soon. They’d left at nine forty-five, and two hours later, it was almost noon.

Which means that the workers would be going on lunch.

Kael found 521 thirty minutes later, and the road was clear by the construction site. No one was around, and all the tools were put away.

_Perfect_.

Kael pressed on the gas slightly, and sped through the construction, getting on the left side of the road, looking for a hotel to stop at. Sumter was a new area for him, and he was hoping he’d learn the area quickly.

He spotted a hotel on South Washington Street. Kael turned onto West Oakland Street and then down onto South Washington, and pulled into the hotel’s parking lot.

Maya stirred, and sat up slowly, rubbing her eyes. She felt a bit more rested then the last few days. She liked being able to sleep, and hoped it’d stay that way.

She could really use the break from the craziness, even for a little while.

“Afternoon, Maya.”

Kael climbed out of the car, and Maya climbed out, too, joining Kael by the trunk. Kael opened it and handed Maya her luggage. Kael removed his duffle bag and then shut the trunk lid, locking it back up.

He checked all the doors, checking to make sure if it’s locked. When he was satisfied, Kael headed to the front doors of the hotel, and opened them swiftly, motioning Maya in first.

“And I thought chivalry was dead.” She muttered.

“It’s not in all of us. Promise. Some of us are better than others.”

Maya nodded and followed Kael to the front desk. He asked for a two bed suite for a month, and placed the money down.

“I’m afraid we only have single bed rooms. A double bed will open up in two weeks. So you can wait for the room to open and sleep in a single or leave.”

Kael groaned, and rubbed his eyes in frustrating. Maya watched him take a deep breath, and try to calm himself.

“Fine. We’ll take the single until a room opens up.”

The guy behind the counter took the cash and handed Kael a key on a blue chain. The two walked over to the elevator, and Maya pressed the down button.

“What floor are we on?”

“We’re on floor 4.”

Maya nodded and the elevator dinged a minute later. The door opened and some people came out, others didn’t. Maya and Kael climbed into the elevator.

Maya pressed the fourth floor button and leaned back against the wall behind her. The elevator stinks like sweat and stale coffee.

It was disgusting.

The doors opened to their floor, and they left in a wave of people who wanted this floor. The doors closed again, and Maya inhaled, enjoying the fresh air.

“That bad, huh?”

“Yeah. It was horrible. It smelled like sweat and stale coffee. If I smell something like that again, I swear I will vomit on whoever is in front of me.”

Kael checked the room number and located the door fairly quickly. He unlocked the door and the two of them barely piled into the small foyer by the door.

Maya got the door shut, and locked it up. Kael was already in the living room, claiming the couch for himself. Maya shook her head, sighing.

_This is ridiculous_.

“Kael, this is stupid. Just come sleep in the bed with me. It’s fine! The couch isn’t good for you back. It’s going to hurt like a mother when you go to stretch or something. And no one wants you to not be able to shoot or fight against the threat.”

“I’m fine. It’s not proper to sleep with a girl in the same bed.”

“Kael! If it was so improper, most girls wouldn’t been in a situation to sleep with other girls. Just come on. It won’t be so bad.”

“No.”

Maya frowned, and grabbed his bag, tossing it onto the bed. Kael turned to her slowly, frowning. Maya didn’t back down from him, glaring at him like he deserved it.

He finally crack ten minutes in and groaned loudly. Maya smirked in approval.

“Fine, fine! But you stay on your side.”

“I can’t promise it. I’ll try is all I can say.”

Kael shook his head. He just got bossed around by his charge. She was a hardheaded one, for sure. And a very demanding person, too.

It was almost like her way or the highway. There was no inbetween those two.

Kael plopped down on the couch and turned the TV onto the news. There was a breaking news cast, and Kael turned it up a bit as he listened.

“An Augusta house was found burned down this morning with one body inside. It is unsure as to whether this fire was an accident or whether this was a cover up for murder. Stay tune for information as it comes in.”

Kael groaned and turned the TV off. He was concerned that RGI might do something with this, and make Maya the bad person in this situation.

Then they’d be on the run not only from RGI, but from murder charges, too.

“Do you think they’ll try to blame it on me? Use it to weed us out?”

“I don’t know, Maya. I honestly don’t know.”

She stood by the table, her arms wrapped around her waist, and she was biting her lip.

“I don’t want to be blamed for murder, Kael.”

“I know you don’t. I don’t want you to be blamed either. Yes, you killed him, but he had a gun on Roxi, _on you_. It was self-defense, and if we were there now, that’s what you’d tell the police.”

She nodded and headed into the room off the kitchen. Kael wished there was something he could do to help. They’ve had to run from her house, to the safe house in Savannah, then the one in Augusta, and now they were trapped in a hotel in Sumter, over 500 miles from their home, where Maya could be arrested for murder.

It was a bad combination.

Maybe Maya knew something. Something she hadn’t told him for some unknown reason. Kael stood, the idea implanted in his brain, and walked into the bedroom.

“Maya, I have a question for you.”

“Go ahead.”

“Has anything strange happened recently? And I’m not talking about the instances that caused problems and forced us to move a few times. I’m talking something you’d notice right away.”

Maya hesitated, and ran her fingers through her blonde hair, shaking it out. She seemed to be debating her choices, and was having a hard time deciding.

“Well, there was this one time. You’d gotten a phone call from the Director, and I was left alone with AJ for a few minutes. Once you were out of earshot, he told me he hated me.”

“Maya, that’s not something weird…”

“Kael, you should’ve heard him. He said it so straight and open to me that I almost choked on my water. He didn’t say it was a joke, or that he was kidding. He was dead serious.”

Kael didn’t want to believe it, certainly didn’t want to think that AJ had something to do with this. He had to get proof for this.

“Isn’t there a database where you can log in and find out who left the state and who didn’t?”

“Yeah, there’s a separate site from the FBI’s main database. It tells us whose in the field and who isn’t, and it tells us who is in the state and out of state.”

Kael took a seat at the computer in the room, and waited almost ten minutes for it to turn on. It was annoying waiting, but Kael didn’t want to use his computer since the FBI can track him directly through it.

He knew he shouldn’t be using this computer, too, since he could be found through this one. But he needed to access the website.

The computer booted up and Kael opened the internet. After it loaded, Kael typed in the website page, and then waited again for the page to load.

He typed in his username and password, then pressed enter. It took a few minutes for it to log in. He waited as the page slowly loaded. After about nine minutes, it loaded and stopped.

Grateful that it was ready, Kael typed in AJ’s name and found his file. As Kael read it, he felt his heart sink a little.

“AJ has been in trouble more times than ever since he finished with the academy a year ago. He has been found in places that he had no authorization for, and has stolen things from the weapons room. His behavior has gotten better recently, but leaves much to desire.”

Maya read that over his shoulder, chewing the edge of her shirt. Kael scrolled down, and felt even sicker.

“He’s supposed to be in Tampa, so why was he in Savannah?”

“I don’t know, Kael. I know this is rough, learning that your friend could possibly have something to do with this hot mess we’re in.”

Kael groaned and placed his head in his hands. This couldn’t be happening. Could Maya be right about AJ? That he might have something to do with this?

“Hey, Kael. They have a copy of AJ’s travels. Maybe something in there will confirm that he’s involved into this?”

Kael nodded and scrolled down, looking over his travel records. He had several trips to Jordan, only for a few hours, or a day. Nothing that stood out.

“He’s made several trips to Jordan which is in the stronghold of the RGI.”

“He had to have a reason to have visited Jordan. Yes, some are only hours or a day, but there are a few here when he was away that were a few days or a week.”

Kael nodded, and closed the internet down. He had enough on his plate to deal with. He didn’t want to think about AJ.

“I’m going to lie down, should you want to join me. Just remembered to stay on your side.”

“I’ll try.”

Kael stood, and turned to the bed. He kicked his shoes off and then dropped the shirt on the floor, creating a pile of dirty clothes.

He climbed into bed and closed his eyes, laying on his back. The bed dipped as Maya joined him.

Maya laid down and closed her eyes. She had slept on the way here, but she was still tired. Her lack of sleep was linked to this, she knew. She also thought her intense thoughts of paranoia was making it difficult to sleep.

She was scared that someone would try to attack her, or kidnap her. The RGI have done quite a bit to her, and she was starting to see they were strictly about violence.

Maya rolled over to face Kael, staying on her side as best as possible. He’d fallen into a deep sleep, and his face was relaxed, less taunt and filled with worry.

It was nice to see him relax, no matter how temporary it was.

She touched his parted mouth and felt her face flush as she thought about want she wanted.

Maya wanted to kiss him, to find out if he liked her or not. But that would be difficult to do with him sleeping. She’d have to do with pretending for right now.

She moved her hand to his cheek and traced it gently, running over the arch of his cheekbones and the straight line of his jawline.

Her aunt Clara used to tell her that a man with a strong jawline was the one to pick, out of everyone in the world. Maya wasn’t sure if her aunt told the truth a lot.

Her family didn’t speak a lot. She wished she’d had a better relationship with the people she called family, but since her mother’s death, and when her mom’s parents tried to have her taken away from her father.

Maya ran her finger along his nose, feeling the air enter his nose. She pulled her hand away as he stirred. Kael settled back down, rolling on his side away from her.

Maya sighed, and turned away from him onto her back, staring at the ceiling. She eventually went to sleep, taking a nice and long cat nap.

Kael stretched, popping his back a little as he did so. Maya was on her back, snoring softly. She had a problem with her throat or something. He’ll let her know about it when she’s up.

Kael got up and went into the kitchen, checking the fridge. It was empty mostly. The cabinets were, too. He’d have to go shopping once Maya was up.

Hopefully that’d be soon.

Kael plopped down on the couch and turned the TV on, keeping it at a low volume.

Maya woke up, and rubbed her eyes, checking the time. It was after two in the afternoon. Her stomach growled at her, and she climbed out of bed, stumbling into the living room.

“Good, you’re awake. First, you snore a lot, Maya. You should get that checked out. Second, there’s no food whatsoever, so we need to go shopping.”

Maya turned red, and glared at him. Kael ignored his charge’s glare. He was too used to it after almost two weeks of her giving him the stink eye.

“Do you watch me sleep?”

“No, your snoring woke me up.”

Okay, that was a lie this time. Her snoring didn’t wake him up. He dealt with his dad’s snoring a lot as a child, so he was practically immune to it now.

“Sorry about that. Once this whole thing is settled, I’ll talk to my dad about going to see a doctor about it.”

Kael nodded and pulled his shoes over to him, sliding them on one at a time, than lacing them up in the same instances. Maya gathered hers up and sat down at the table, pulling them on and tying them up quickly and efficiently.

Kael grabbed his wallet and stuck it in his front pocket, then the keys to the Impala, and their room key. Maya shut the door and checked that it unlocked, like it should.

They got into the Impala, and Kael started it. Maya buckled up and got herself situated in the passenger seat.

“I think I saw a grocery store on the left of the road. I think it was an Albertson.”

Maya nodded and looked out the window, keeping an eye for it. She looked for a while, and rubbed her eyes a moment before returning to looking.

“Kael! There. It’s right there.”

Kael pulled into the small parking lot and parked by the gas pumps. He parked and turned off the car, taking the key with him.

“Will you be alright in the car while I get the groceries?”

“Yes, Kael, I’ll be fine. No one is going to think of getting at us while I have the best weapon of choice.”

Kael nodded, and climbed out of the car. He looked back as Maya preoccupied herself with getting the knife Kael had slipped her on the way over. For Maya, a knife was the best option for her. It allowed her to get in close and attack, should something happen.

Kael entered the store, and picked up a basket, heading into an empty aisle. He quickly checked that his gun was hidden beneath his shirt, and continued down the aisle.

He pulled a giant bag of Doritos, a mix of nacho cheese and cool ranch. Kael found a medium size package of turkey meat, then got some sour cream, taco sauce, lettuce, tomato and cheese.

He figured they could do some walking tacos for lunch. Kael found a bag of chicken tenders and got a bottle of barbeque sauce.

Satisfied with what he got, just to tide them over for a day or two, Kael walked up to the register. He waited at the end, wallet in hand.

He was going to use some cash he had on him. Normally he being a bit sparing with the on hand cash, but he couldn’t use his card. Not if the police was using the FBI to possibly track it.

He couldn’t risk having the Sumter PD raining hellfire on them.

The TV behind the counter was turned to the news. Kael paled as he heard his name and Maya’s get spewed across the soundwave.

“Augusta police have received an anonymous tip that the people behind the Augusta murder is a seventeen year old Kael Hazeldine and sixteen year old Maya Caparelli. Maya Caparelli will be seventeen next month on December 19th. It is believed that they are both armed and dangerous. Do not approach them if you happen upon them. Call the police immediately. Pictures of both suspects are here now, and will circulate every half hour.”

Kael felt like he was going to throw up. What he exactly had feared was now happening. The RGI was blaming not only Maya, but Kael, too, for this.

And now the police were on their trail, determine to find them.

“Excuse me, sir, do you have any hair dye and an electric razor?”

“Ah, yes. They’re this way. I’ll bring them for you.”

Kael stood by the counter, waiting as the man went to get what he had requested. He was jittery, and moving constantly. He had to get out of here, before they circulated their pictures again.

“Here you go, sir.”

“Thank you.”

“I brought several colors, since you weren’t specific about what you wanted.”

Kael picked up a black for Maya, and a platinum for himself. He pushed the others off to the side and placed both boxes and the electric razor on the counter.

“These will do.”

“Okay, sir, your total is $55 dollars and 62 cents.”

Kael gave him sixty dollars, and took everything in his hands. Kael left quickly, not concerned about getting his five dollars back. He was just concerned about getting back to the car and getting out of here.

Kael opened the back door and dropped the bags in the back. He slammed the door shut, and walked around to the driver’s side. Kael climbed in and shoved his key into the ignition, and started the car.

“We’ve got a problem.”

“What’s wrong?”

“RGI did exactly what I feared. They have implicated you in the murder of that man, and the arson, too, possibly. They’ve also dragged me into this.”

“Oh, God. What are we supposed to do, Kael? They’ll find us sooner or later, especially if our pictures are floating around!”

“They are, which means we have to change our looks from what we look like in the pictures, even a little. I got some hair dye, black for you and platinum for me. I also got an electric razor for me, so I change my haircut. It’s up to you if you want me to cut your hair or not.”

Maya was silent for a moment, and then ran her finger over the edge of the knife she’d been holding. She seemed to be contemplating this decision.

“Would this knife be sharp enough to cut through it?”

“I think so, yeah.”

“Then cut my hair. If this is one of our very limited options, then I guess I have to do this.”

Kael nodded and turned, heading up the street to their hotel. He parked and turned the car off, climbing out. Maya opened the back door on her side and took the bags out.

They hurried into the hotel room, and Kael shut the door, locking it up. He shut the blinds and closed the curtains on the two windows in the room.

“Let’s get you done first.”

They went into the bathroom, and Kael took out the stuff in Maya’s dye. He mixed the developer and the color into the bottle. He shook it slightly, added the oil, and shook it firmly.

He then took the knife from her and cut her hair to the base of her neck. Then he took the dye and began applying it, trying to cover all the areas so none of her original hair color showed.

Kael put the timer for thirty minutes and waited, leaning against the door frame. When the timer went off, he got her under the shower head, and washed out the excess hair dye.

“Alright, I’m all done. Keep your hair in a towel until it dries.”

“Alright.”

Kael brought in his stuff, and plugged in the razor. With the correct guard on the razor, he started by his ear and slowly shaved the side of his head and the back with military precision.

He dusted himself off of excess hair, and then removed his hair dye from the box. He mixed the developer and color into the bottle, gave it a slight shake, placed oil in it, and shook it all together.

With that done, Kael went through his hair with the dye, covering everything, including his roots, the area he shaved off and the bit of hair he’d left on top.

He started the timer and waited for it to go off.

In the meantime, he thought about his next step. They wouldn’t be able to stay here forever. The RGI were bound to find them and tip off the police.

That could be hours, days, weeks, or months before they did that. Kael didn’t want to be all nonchalant about it, but he didn’t want to jump the gun, either.

He’d have to play it by the ear.

The timer went off, and Kael got by the bath/shower, and washed his hair free of the excess. He wrapped a towel around his head once he was done and was sure that there wasn’t any more dye.

Kael tossed the boxes into the plastic bag that they came in and tossed into the trash bin beside their room. He couldn’t risk leaving any of that in stuff in the room.

If they had to make a quick escape, the police would have found it later and realized that that they had dyed their hair to avoid capture.

Maya was on the bed when he came out, staring at the TV as their pictures circulated again. Kael sat down next to her and watched the news as they spewed the same information as they did an hour earlier.

The good news is that the RGI hadn’t released any new information on either of them yet. But he wasn’t going to hold his breath.

“Is this what they think of us? They think we’re criminals?”

“Unfortunately, yes. They think we did this. So, yes, they do think we’re criminals. But we know that we’re not criminals. And that is all that matters right at this moment, besides having a plan should we have to leave quickly or if we get separated from each other.”

“I agree. We both need to be prepped should we run into a problem, like the Sumter Police coming for us.”

“Did you get the food put away?”

“Yes, I did.”

“Okay. I was think that we’d having walking tacos for lunch, and chicken tenders for dinner?”

“Sounds good to me.”

“Good, because I don’t know when we’ll be leaving this room again. Which probably won’t be unless there is an absolute emergency that needs to be addressed.”

“Okay.”

“And neither of us leaves without the other. As a precaution. We can’t risk anything happening to either of us. You have your dad to make out of this alive. And I have my friends.”

“I agree. I think we should do shifts. One stays awake while the other sleeps, and vice versa. That way someone is up if something happens, like the police are about to drop on us or the RGI is banging down our door.”

Kael nodded and stood, stretching. He was tense as hell, and itching to get Maya away from this again. Unfortunately, this is going to follow them until everything is taken care of again.

“I’m going to start the taco meat. You can come help or stay in here and lie down. I can’t make you do something you don’t want to do.”

“I’d like to help, if you don’t mind. Everything that had happened has been very distracting and stressful. It’d be nice to do something that seems normal for once.”

“Alright. Well, come on. You can start with tearing the lettuce apart.”

Maya followed Kael into the kitchen, her gaze steady on his hair. She was so used to his hair being there and not platinum. It looked nice on him, though.

“What made you think to dye our hair different colors?”

“To be honest, it’s something I read about in a book once. I think that is what gave me the idea, I suppose. It worked, at least. I think black was the best option in your case.”

“I agree.”

Kael moved the meat around, his tongue stuck between his lips as he thought about their plans should the police come raining hellfire on them.

“Let’s get that map out while we eat. I think our best plan of action is to consider our options that are given by the map.”

“Okay. I’m almost done here, so I’ll get the map set out across the table.”

Kael nodded and got a little more water, drizzling it over the meat. The water sizzled and popped. Kael stirred the meat around, then opened the taco seasoning he found in a drawer while they’d been at the safe house in Augusta. He dumped the seasoning in and gave it a good stir.

Kael pulled the meat off, and scooped it into a bowl. He turned the stove off and placed a plate on top of the meat to keep it warm, and started on the tomatoes.

Maya returned a few minutes later, and brought out the cheese, the sour cream, the taco sauce and the bag of Doritos, ripping open the bag. Kael used his knife to scoop some tomatoes into a container and resumed cutting.

“I’ve got the map spread out as evenly as I could. The table is square, and not very big, which makes it difficult to spread the map out.”

“Thank you, Maya. You can start getting yourself some lunch. I’ll be done in a moment.”

Maya grabbed a bag of _Cool Ranch_ Doritos, and scooped some taco meat into the bag, then some lettuce, cheese, sour cream, and taco sauce.

She mixed it a bit by shaking the bag and then took a fork to mix it around the rest of the way. Maya jabbed her fork into the bag, and shoved some meat into her mouth, chewing.

Kael finished chopping the last tomato, and then put the rest back into the fridge. He grabbed a bag of _Nacho Cheese_ Doritos, and opened the bag. He scooped the meat in, then cheese, tomatoes, sour cream, and taco sauce. Kael shook the bag for several minutes before grabbing a fork to break the chips inside.

Maya was looking over the map, scooping another forkful of taco meat, cheese and so on into her mouth. She seemed to be thinking, chewing.

“Any ideas?”

“Well, if we had to split, I think one of us should take the Impala. And then we could meet up somewhere far away, and get out of town. That is the best option as far as separation goes.”

“Okay. Let’s tweak it. How about you take the Impala, should we have to split? I don’t know about your exercise routine, but I’ve been running since I first joined the academy three years ago. I can outrun the cops. I can lose them, too.”

“Okay. But where would we meet that wouldn’t allow the police on us again?”

“Okay, we are here, at the Holiday Inn. If you take the Impala, then you can go up this street here, and turn left here, then drive over three streets to the Dollar Tree. I’ll meet you there in case of separation. If I don’t meet you there with fifteen minutes, then you are to leave there and head for the border, okay?”

“Okay. Now what about when we don’t get separated?”

“I think our best option would be to get back in the 119 and take it North as far as possible.”

“Okay. Would we end up in Canada?”

“No, but where they can’t find us. Somewhere where we can hide in peace. If we cross into Canada, I won’t be able to get any updates on what the hell is going or your dad.”

Maya nodded and scooped another big bite of the walking taco in her mouth, chewing slowly. She walked around the map and then placed her finger on a city.

“Let’s get to Philadelphia, should the Sumter police come after us for that man’s death.”

“I think that’s the best route. It is 587 miles from here to there, which is considerably less than the other two. All three routes have tolls, so I’ll need to have money on hand to pay and get through.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“Yup.”

Maya sat down in a chair as Kael folded up the map, and shoved it back into his bag. Maya was glad for a game plan, should either of those scenarios happen. Maya had her license and could drive without behind pull over.

At least she hoped so.

Maya wondered if Kelli and Roxi got over the border into Canada. Maya bit her lip as she thought about Kelli. Her jealousy had stopped gnawing at her, though it was rearing its ugly head again.

She had to know about Kael and Kelli. It was the only way she’d feel some relief.

“Kael?”

“Yeah?”

“What was your relationship to Kelli?”

Kael choked on his food, and coughed loudly in an attempt to clear his throat. His relationship with Kelli was a messy one, and very complicated.

“Our relationship is complicated. It’s really complicated, Maya. We were both new to the life of being an academy student. We got involved in things that were unprofessional and would’ve cost us our jobs. It was fine until Kelli’s sister became our witness then.”

“What happened?”

“Kelli’s sister was exactly like Roxie. She was hot headed, and didn’t want anyone protecting her. She was our assignment. I was only there to make sure Kelli kept her head on straight.”

“What put Kelli’s sister under your care?”

“She was caught with cocaine, but to avoid charges, the FBI offered her a deal. All she had to do was tell all of the drug dealers she’d been in contact with to get cocaine. So, she did, and the drug dealers’ men found out that she’d ratted them out.”

“And?”

“So, she was put into our care. We got involved with each other, involved in ways that agents shouldn’t do. One night, we were so busy screwing that we didn’t hear Kelli’s sister screaming for help. One of the drug dealers had found us, and bludgeoned her to death. It was horrible discovering her. And that is why I have the relationship I do with Kelli.”

Maya swallowed and wiped her eyes quickly, pretending not to not have been crying. Kael ran his fingers through his hair, and sat next to her.

“I shouldn’t have told you.”

“I’m glad you did. It’s nice knowing what happened. It makes me understand how it went down.”

Maya nodded and then continued on her walking taco, staring at the TV screen as _Family Guy_ came on. She contented herself with that, too tired to even think about changing the channel.

Her life had been turned upside down since the day she found the weapon in her closet. She’d been attacked twice, moved to three different houses, and now was on the run from the police. And her hair was no longer as it was before. It was the color of black, which allowed him to get the dye on quickly.

Maya finished her taco, dropping the bag into the trashed and washing her fork in the sink. She yawned and went into the new room, then dropped down onto the bed, snoring slightly.

Kael tossed his taco and checked on Maya. She was sleeping, snoring still. He yawned and kicked off his shoes, then collasped on the bed.

Kael was out in minutes, and he enjoyed every second of it. If they were going to have one person up to watch the other, then he needed all the sleep he could to make it through his six hour.

_I have to protect Maya. That is what is most important. I didn’t care about himself. I cared strictly for Maya._

**_Enough to love her?_ **

Kael stared at Maya’s back, and then she rolled over, facing him in utter silence. Kael swallowed and then touch her mouth, tracing her lips.

_Do you love me?_

He was staring at her mouth, and swallowed, his throat dry. He wanted to know the answer to that question.

Was Maya in love with him? Did he love her?

He didn’t know. He barely even knew Maya. He hadn’t seen her in a long time, up until last week when he showed up on her doorstep, ready to protect her at all cost.

He wanted to wake her, but couldn’t risk it.

_I can’t do it. It’s not in my nature to love anyone. I’d proven that with Kelli. Every relationship I had failed. I wasn’t going to risk her safety just to admit my feelings to her._

Kael ran his fingers along her nose and ridge. She scrunched up her nose when he did that, and Kael grinned, then did it again.

“What am I doing?”

That was a good question to ask. He shouldn’t be touching her in any way possible. This was incredible wrong and unprofessional.

He traced her throat, and imagined kissing her throat. Her skin was smooth, and incredibly soft. Kael shuddered, and closed his eyes for a minute to catch his breath.

_Dammit._

Kael rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. She had this damn effect over him that he would even let her push him around. Maya was stubborn, and annoying, and strong headed, and beautiful, too.

_Holy fuck, am I in love with Maya?!_

No way! He didn’t know for sure. There is no way that he is in love with Maya. But the way she acted about him, and spoke to him made him find it hard to believe she was someone nice. He thought she was spoiled, too.

But his first impression had been completely wrong.

Maya wasn’t any of the things he’d described, and she wasn’t a spoiled brat, either. For someone whose dad had money out of his ears, and an only child on top of that, she was the most selfless person he’d ever met.

He had a distant memory of when her father took them out to lunch. She insisted on having her father order an extra meal and put into a takeout box right when they were going to leave.

Her father obliged her, and brought the extra meal. When they went outside, Maya ran up to a homeless man, and held out the meal to him.

Kael smiled softly, and rolled onto his side again. The man thanked her repeatedly for the meal. And then, up until her mother’s death, Maya talked about developing a program that would give the homeless homes and jobs, which would allow them to get back onto their feet and decrease the homeless population.

She was even going to put in a sub section of it that would pay particular attention to homeless veterans with PTSD.

_I wonder if she decided to get that going…_

Kael wanted to ask her, but wasn’t sure how to go about it without letting her figure out who he was to her.

He yawned and rolled back onto his back, listening to Maya’s soft breathing. Soon he was falling asleep to the sound of her breathing, like a lullaby.

Maya sat up and stretched, cracking her back. She checked the time on the clock on the bedside table. She couldn’t believe it was three forty five.

Kael was still asleep next to her. Maya didn’t want to wake him by getting up, so she laid back down and stared at the ceiling, thinking about the dream she’d just had.

It was another one of the little boy she knew as a child. She still couldn’t get over how much he reminds Maya of Kael. Maya still wasn’t sure about it.

There was no way she knew Kael as a child. Maya would’ve remembered him. His personality was distinctive, and could be easily picked apart in a crowd.

Maybe if she looked back at the old yearbook, she’d be able to know for sure. She had brought it with her actually, since it had the letters from her mother in it while she was in the hospital.

There was no way in hell she was leaving without them.

As much as her mother’s suicide hurt Maya still, she still loved her mother. The letters reminded her of a simpler time, before she was diagnosed with lung cancer.

Maya got up and slowly climbed off the bed, and then walked over to her bag. She opened it as quietly as possible, then pulled out her yearbook.

She’d since separated her mother’s letters from the yearbook, and kept them in a baggie. Maya opened the yearbook and flipped through the pages. The people on the news had said his last name was Hazeldine, and the name sounded familiar.

Maya reached her class, and scanned the page for his name. Finally, she reached the _not pictured_ section. There was only one name listed there that Maya recognized.

_There’s the name! But without a picture, I won’t know for sure if that’s really him._

Maya would have to get on the internet, and search for his name. Something was bound to pop up. It’s not like she had nothing to lose.

**_Except Kael for snooping into his past_**.

Maya shook off her consciousness for once, and shoved the yearbook back under her clothes, and unfurled her legs, walking over to the computer on the desk.

She looked behind her, and was relieved to find Kael still asleep. With that relief in hand, Maya booted the computer up, and waited patiently. She muted the sound once it was on the desktop. She doubled clicked the internet, and waited on that, too.

The internet came up, and Maya typed in Hazeldine. The first search option was _Hazeldine murder_ , so she clicked on it and waited for the Google search page to load.

After it loaded, Maya clicked the first article. It took forever for the page to load, and when it did, Maya felt like her stomach plummeted.

_Oh my god. That’s the little boy I’ve been seeing in my dreams! But what is his name? Does the story have it?_

Maya searched the article, her stomach turning in the potential that it was him. And then she found his name in the article, and felt her stomach plummet farther.

**_Yesterday morning, the body of Alexis Hazeldine was discovered in the apartment of Stella (43) and Kael (7) Hazeldine. Stella Hazeldine was nowhere to be seen, and her son Kael was nowhere in the house. The murder weapon was discovered under Alexis Hazeldine’s body. An ABP has been taken out for her car, described as a silver 2002 Toyota corolla. There are no bumper stickers, but the right brake light is out._ **

Maya couldn’t believe it. She’d heard about this story from daddy ten years ago. She remembered all the police, and her father even got pulled in to help.

**_Fingerprints have been taken from the body and the murder weapon. Interviews with neighbors have reported that Stella and Alexis had arguments in the past, and even screaming matches. An arrest warrant has been issued for Stella Hazeldine, and a missing person report has been issued for Kael Hazeldine._ **

**_Stella Hazeldine is five foot seven, with black hair, blue eyes, and a tattoo of a rose on her left shoulder. Kael is three foot eight, with black hair, green eyes, and a scar on his upper lip. Any information leading to either of their whereabouts would be great._ **

Maya covered her mouth for a moment. She couldn’t believe this. Kael _was_ the little boy they’d brought into the FBI office! She’d heard about him from her dad, but until her father started bringing her into the FBI office, she had no idea who he even was.

And now she did know.

_Should I bring this up? I mean, I was watching them hunt her down for days, and never find her or Kael. I don’t think it’d be a great idea. I’ll keep this to myself, and maybe bring it up at a better time._

Maya deleted the search history, so if Kael went on, he wouldn’t find what she was looking for, and turned the computer off.

She went back to the bed and laid down. Maya attempted to sleep, but it didn’t help. Her mind was too busy going in circles, trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together and chasing after them.

_Why didn’t he tell her? What was the point in not saying anything? Did he not want her to know because of conflict between him and her?_

These were questions she had to have answered. And he would answer them. Every single one. Maya would get him to, in due course.

Right now, they had bigger problems to handle. And bigger fish to fry.

Maya stared at the ceiling, waiting for Kael to wake up. She preoccupied herself with her books, reading Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief. She was just at the part where Percy has just woken up in camp and had no idea where he was.

She nodded off, leaving the book sitting on her chest, word side down.

Kael groaned and rubbed his eyes. It was almost five o’ clock. He had to get dinner going. He looked to see if Maya was up, but it looked she was still asleep.

She had a book in her hand, pressed down into the sheet. He picked it up and folded the page for her. Kael smiled when he saw the title.

She must be a big fan of Greek culture.

Kael climbed out of bed as carefully and quietly as he could. He then backed up into the kitchen, and opened the freezer, getting the chicken tenders out and into the fridge. A trick he picked up was to thaw things out a little while waiting for the oil to heat up.

This allowed the food to cook quicker and resulted in a quicker cook time.

Kael read a magazine while he was waiting, and then dropped the chicken into the baskets. He lowered them both in and went back to his magazine.

Kael felt like he was being stared at a minute or two later, and looked over his shoulder. Maya was awake, and rubbing her eyes.

“Evening, sleepy head. Are you hungry?”

“Very much so.”

“Good, because the chicken is done.”

Kael lifted both trays and shook off the excess oil the best he could. He then put the chicken onto the same plate, and dried them out a little.

“Help yourself. Barbeque sauce is in the fridge.”

“Thanks, Kael.”

Kael loaded up his plate, and then poured some barbeque sauce into a container, and went to eat at the dining room table.

Maya joined him a minute later, and dug into her dinner. Kael dug in, too, and watched her wipe her mouth. He watched her lick her lips, and lick off the gloss.

_Damn_.

She was distracting. Maya was very, very distracting. The way she licked her lips was enticing, and he was really tempted into kissing her.

But he didn’t.

Kael wasn’t even sure she liked him back, or even at all. He couldn’t jump the gun anyway. Maya needed protecting, and he made sure that everything was in order to ensure that.

Maya dipped her chicken tender into barbeque sauce and ate it, chewing thoughtfully. Kael was trying to keep his eyes on his plate, and was failing.

_I want to know if he likes me. But I don’t want to talk about it now. Now wasn’t the time. We are both being framed for a murder we didn’t commit. And if we are not careful, then we will get caught for a crime we didn’t even commit. Okay, I killed the man, but only for self-defense. He had a gun to my head._

_I had no choice._

Maya swallowed, and took a sip of her water. She peeked at Kael from under her lashes. He was looking away from her, thinking about something.

_If only I could tell what he thinking!_

Kael cleared his throat and stood, taking his plate in his hands. Maya looked up at him, tilting her head to the side. Where was he going?

“Someone should keep watch. In case the police show up.”

“Oh, okay. I’ll be here, then.”

Kael nodded, and headed off into the bedroom, which gave him a view of the street. He’d see if the police showed or someone from RGI appeared on the scene.

He knew they would be pissed about the man Maya had killed, and want to come after her harder than before. He was dead set on not letting them get her. He’d read reports of what he’d done to those that had information to the whereabouts of people who’d screwed them over or escaped with knowledge of the group.

It hadn’t been pretty, and most of them had died during the torture.

Kael wasn’t going to submit Maya to that, for it would break her. He knew it would.

As he chewed his chicken, a familiar car pulled up outside the hotel. Kael almost choked when he saw AJ get out of the car. If Maya’s suspicions were true, and AJ did have something to do with RGI, they would have to tread lightly around him.

“Maya, where’s your knife?”

“It’s in my boot. Why do you ask?”

“AJ’s here. And if your suspicions were true, then we have to tread lightly around him. Make sure he doesn’t realize that we don’t trust him.”

“How did find us? We got rid of the GPS in Augusta!”

“I think he might have followed us. Just play along with me, and we’ll get out of here as soon as he’s gone. Is your bag packed?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Good. I want you to toss out our plates, and wash them. Quickly. I want to be out of here as quickly as possible. It’s 587 miles from here, and we might not be there until morning.”

Someone knocked at the door, and they both tensed, staring at it for a minute. Maya stood and took their plates into the kitchen, emptying them into the trash can there. She washed the plates off and left them in the sink.

Kael looked through the peephole and unlocked the door, keeping his hand behind him with a grip on his gun, opening the door slowly with a small smile on lips.

“Hey, AJ, what’s up? I didn’t expect you here.”

“My assignment changed.”

“Got it. How are you?”

“I’m fine. You?”

“We’re great. Absolutely great.”

AJ and Kael stood facing each other, Kael tempted to pull his gun out now and shot him in the kneecaps. He couldn’t believe that this guy, who’d been his best friend all his life, was possibly involved all of this.

“Well, I’ll let the director know that all is well.”

“You go do that.”

“I will.”

Kael shut the door and bolted it, then turned to Maya. She had her suitcase and his duffle bag over her shoulder. Kael took it from her, and he unlocked the door again, peeking into the hall.

He could hear footsteps going down the stairs. AJ must have taken the elevator up here. They were on the sixth floor. It’d be a while before he got down, if he took it a step at a time.

“Let’s take the elevator. We could get down there before he does and get the hell out of here without him knowing possibly.”

“We could. But he’ll notice the Impala gone.”

“I don’t care. He won’t be able to follow us, since we’ll be gone before he even notices.”

Kael led Maya into the hall, and pressed the down button. The doors opened not even a moment later, and they piled in, pressing the first floor button.

Kael stared at the floor numbers as they changed, and he hoped that they would get down there before AJ did. They needed to get out of there before AJ does.

The elevator didn’t stop at any other floors, and they were able to get to the ground floor. AJ was nowhere to be seen, which was a relief.

“Let’s go.”

Maya and Kael headed for the Impala, and Kael placed the luggage in the backseat. Kael opened his door, then opened Maya’s door. She climbed in, and pulled the seatbelt on.

A hand came down on her shoulder and Maya screamed, jerking away from the hand. Kael yanked his gun out and placed it in the face of whoever was in the back of the Impala.

“Kelli?!”

“Guilty as charge. Wanna get the gun out of my face, Kael, and drive? I slashed AJ’s tires, so he should be stuck for a while.”

“What are you doing here? Where’s Roxi?”

“I’m right here, you dolts. How do you think we got in the Impala, anyway?”

Roxi held up her lock picking kit, grinning. Maya stared at them both in disbelief. She couldn’t believe this. How long had they been following them?

“I suggest you get moving, because I see AJ in the lobby.”

“Shit.”

Kael started the Impala, and spun out of the parking lot, gravel flying. He took to the road and turned north, heading for the I-95 north.

“Where are we heading?”

“Philadelphia.”

“And why there?”

“The further away we are, the harder it is to track us.”

“We saw yours and Maya’s pictures on the news. They said that there was a warrant out for your arrest. Why?”

“Maya killed that man that held a gun to Roxi’s head. She killed him, and the RGI burned down the house. Now we are being framed as the criminals.”

“Is that why Maya’s hair is black and yours is shaved and dyed platinum?”

“Yeah. The less we look like ourselves in the pictures, the better. They wouldn’t be able to find us if we changed our looks.”

Roxi nodded, and leaned back on the seat, Maya’s suitcase squished against her. Kelli was holding his duffle bag, and had her gun on top of it.

“I thought you guys were on your way to Canada. What happened?”

“We saw you on the news, and knew that you were in a hell of a lot of trouble. We decided to come back and find you guys. It was hell trying to find you.”

“Yeah, it was! We followed you for days before we had to change cars. We had to ditch our car when we found an explosive under the hood. It’s a good thing we got rid of it when we did. I pity the sucker who decides to drive it when it blows.”

Kael nodded. Maya sat in her silently, staring at her hands. She couldn’t believe that they came back. They came back at the risk of their own life to help them.

“Now, what exactly is going on with AJ? Why are you avoiding him like the plague?”

“Maya has had suspicions that AJ wasn’t who he seemed. She thinks that he might be a part of the RGI. I checked his records in our system. He’s been on his worst behavior lately, and he’s been to Jordan eight times in this month alone.”

“You think AJ is a traitor?”

“I think he’s their spy on the inside. I think that’s how he knew where we would be. That’s how he was able to find us, even after we destroyed the GPS that had been hidden in Maya’s luggage.”

“This is insanity. Have you told the Director? I’d tell her myself, but I lose my burner running for Augusta.”

“I can’t. He’ll know if I tell her, and he could found out the information I would tell her. We need to keep this on the down low. Anything the FBI knows, AJ will know.”

Maya was quiet through all of this. She was frightened, Kael could tell. She wanted this to be over, to have this end once and for all.

But that wasn’t likely.

“We’ll get to Philadelphia, and figured out our next move. We cannot stay in Philadelphia forever. We need to be careful, and stay off the streets as much as possible. The less we are seen, the better.”

“Kelli, Roxi, you guys haven’t been seen before. You could walk around town and no one would know any the wiser. We’d be safe not being seen.”

“I think that’s a great plan. Kelli and I don’t have finger prints, so we could avoid the whole getting caught deal.”

“You guys are practically invisible. No one would be the wiser. It would be perfect. Now let’s get out of this town.”

No one spoke for the rest of the ride, and the ride went smoothly. They got into the I-95, and drove north.

Kael had money on him, and he paid each toll as he went on. He didn’t have time to be stopping and going, and wanted to get out quickly.

He wasn’t sure how long it would take AJ to get new tires on the car and how long it’d take for him to find them again. Kael hoped he would take his time, checking Sumter to determine if they were still in the small town or not.

And when he discovered them gone, Kael wasn’t sure how long that could stay like this. They would get caught eventually, and that couldn’t happen.

He refused to let it happen.

“Where are we?”

Four hours had gone by since he drove off, and they had barely any light. Save that of the headlights, which were shitty, but they provided some light to see by.

“We are on the 495. We’re passing through Alexandria. I didn’t see anyone following us, so I think we’ll crash in the car tonight. I don’t want to risk a hotel tonight.”

Roxie nodded, and sat back against the seat, closing her eyes as they bumped along the road. Maya curled up in the seat and closed her eyes, letting the car lull her to sleep.

She didn’t know what would happen next.


	6. Chapter 6

Maya jerked awake as Kael suddenly spun the car in a wide arc, turning onto a side road. She was confused, and still half asleep.

“Kael, what the fuck! What are you doing?!”

“They caught up to us. And AJ’s got reinforcement.”

Kelli swore under her breath, and pulled out a Beretta 9MM, flicking off the safety. She rolled down her window and pulled her body out of it, firing off a couple of shots.

“Maya, take my gun and help Kelli! She’s only got fifteen rounds in that Beretta, and she’s already shot off four.”

Maya picked the gun up gingerly, and flicked the safety off. Taking the safety off put Maya in home territory, and her blues eyes hardened.

It was a .40 S&W pistol, the kind her dad had taught her to shoot with. This was perfect. She cocked it, and rolled down her window.

“Kael, what’s the magazine in this?”

“I got a twenty round magazine.”

“Perfect.”

Maya hauled herself out the window, and balanced herself, aiming the gun at the man on top of the truck, who was aiming for Kelli.

“Kelli, aim for the windshield! BLIND THEM!”

She had to shout to be heard over the wind. Maya closed one eye, and focused on her target. She got him in her sights, and pressed down on the trigger slowly.

When she was able to aim without missing, she pressed down quick and sure. His head whipped back and he was down, his body and gun clattering off the roof of the car.

“Bang.” Maya whispered, cocking the .40 again, releasing the shell from the chamber.

The glass on the front of the car fractured, and the car swerved off the road, slamming into the ditch. Maya aimed again, swinging as Kael took another turned widely.

“Dammit, Kael, you almost threw me from the car!”

“Sorry, dammit, I’m trying to save our fucking lives here!”

Maya settled into position, her next target in her line of sight. AJ was on top of the roof, a sniper rifle aimed at Maya. She give him a nasty look.

“YOU’RE A SON OF A BITCH, AJ!”

“Don’t you think I know?”

Maya aimed for his head, and pressed on the trigger slowly, waiting for her opportunity to take him out once and for all. Kelli shot the windshield, and it fractured. The driver swerved, struggling to see. Maya didn’t have much time before it went off the road.

She shot, and watched the car go off the road, crashing into the forest. Maya wasn’t sure if she’d hit AJ or not, but she was damn sure she put a bullet into his head.

And that felt satisfying as fuck to do.

Maya slide back into the car and cocked the gun, another shell spitting out. She rolled up her window as Kelli followed her in, and flicked the safety back on.

Maya put the safety on and handed it back to Kael, who accepted it from her and shoved it into the waistband of his jeans. Maya leaned back against the seat, rubbing her eyes. She has never shot someone before, except paper human beings.

She’d felt right at fucking home, though.

“Fuck, that was the closest we’d come to being done for. I didn’t think you could shoot like that Maya. You were in a damn trance, I’ll tell you. And two shots to end them both? Fucking amazing shit.”

Kael looked over at Maya from the corner of his eye, watching her. She’d slipped back into herself, but for a damn minute, she’d become someone else.

“Two rounds is all it took to end it?”

“I think I got AJ. I’m not sure. Kelli fractured the windshield and that knocked them off the road. I managed to get a shot in before they were thrown off into the woods.”

Kael nodded, and turned his eyes back to the road. A few roads back, before AJ and his goons showed up, he’d seen a sign that said they were 254 miles from Philadelphia by car.

“It shouldn’t much longer now. I’ll get us back onto the I-95 north. We had 254 miles to go the last time I saw a sign.”

Kael backtracked down the road he’d taken to attempt to lose AJ and his fucking goons. Now that this had happened, he had no doubt in his mind that AJ was involved in this.

He might even be behind this somewhat.

But for what reason could he possibly have to go after Maya and her dad, who had never done anything to him?

“I’ll call the Director tomorrow, when we’re in Philadelphia. Let her know about AJ. That he needs to be apprehended quickly, since you aren’t sure if you shot him, Maya. What was that road we just came off of?”

“It was, uh, Mary Lou Road.”

“Really? That’s the name?”

“Yes, Kael, it is.”

Kael shook his head, trying to not to laugh. But then it burst out of him and he had to stop to get it out of his system. Maya giggled, and then started laughing with him, too.

It wasn’t long before Kelli and Roxi joined him in the laughter, shaking the car as they laughed. Finally, they all calmed down, wiping her eyes.

“I didn’t think we could find something so funny in a serious situation like this.”

“You’d be surprised what you can find funny in serious situations. We should get a move on, since it is four hours until dawn, and I’d rather we all be in Philadelphia by that time.”

Maya nodded and then curled up again, letting the car lull her to sleep.

Kael was lucky that he’d stopped for coffee when he went to get gas for the Impala. The girls were still asleep, oblivious that they had even stopped. Kael got some donuts and water for the girls, as well as a big jug of water to refill the bottles and a funnel. He had loose cash on him, and used that instead of his card.

He’d be harder to track that way.

Kael placed the items on the floors where Maya’s feet would be normally, since she was curled up in her seat dead asleep.

They were six miles outside of Philadelphia. It wouldn’t be much longer, and then they could crash in a no questions motel. They’d been lucky, and managed to get through every toll they’d come across.

No one had been working them, and had left the bars up, which allowed them pass through easily. Kael knew they turned off the cameras there when no one was working it.

Kael had checked for motels or hotels earlier with the Google ask on his phone, and found a few in Philadelphia. There was a hotel on Sansom Street called the Inn at the League.

He would check in there, and get them into a room, quickly. He had no time to dilly dally around. Their safety was the upmost importance in his mind, and surely in Kelli’s mind, too.

Maya groaned and rubbed her eyes, stretching. They were in the car still, but it look they’d enter Philadelphia. She wasn’t sure when, but it couldn’t been too long since they’d entered.

“Careful. There’s a bag of food and drinks at your feet. Don’t crush it.”

Maya was startled by Kael’s voice and placed her hand on her chest, trying to slow her rapid heartbeat. Kael kept his eyes on the street signs, looking for some street.

“Damn, Kael, you scared the shit out of me.”

“Sorry.”

Maya shook her head and rubbed her eyes again. She was tired. Being jerked awake by a maniac son of a bitch chasing you really screwed with your sleeping patterns.

She was also worried about other things, like her dad. Maya hoped up and down that he was okay. She just wanted her father home and for this to be over.

“Where did you learn to shoot like that?”

“My dad taught me. Insisted that I needed to protect myself one day. Mom didn’t agree, but she let him teach me anyway. I felt at home with a gun in my hands. It felt right.”

“I feel that way sometimes, too. Like I’m home with my gun in my hands or in the waistband of my jeans, literally inches away for me to grab.”

Maya was quiet for a minute, and she shifted in her seat, staring out the windshield window. She seemed to be in a world of her own.

“I liked it, you know.”

_Like what?_

“What do you mean?”

“I liked shooting. I liked shooting people in the head. I _liked_ it, Kael. Isn’t that fucked up? I like killing people, Kael.”

“You didn’t have a choice last night, Maya, they were gonna run us off the road and kill us if we made it out alive. It was a life or death situation.”

“Life or death situation or not, I liked it, Kael. I don’t think I needed a life or death situation to do what I did. I killed a man, and I just killed another two. _I liked killing them_.”

“Maya…”

“Can’t you see how fucked up I am? I am a sick person, a very sick person in my mind, Kael. I shouldn’t even be allowed a gun.”

Kael pulled over on the side of the road, and put the Impala into park. He turned to Maya, lines forming between his eyebrows as he frowned.

“Maya, we are all fucked up. Every person in this car is fucked up. It’s not just you. You’re not alone.”

“Kael, I like to kill people. How is that not horribly fucked up?”

“Maya, I watched my mom brutally murder my sister in cold blood. Trust me, we are a lot more fucked up than you like to believe.”

Maya covered her mouth at the words. She had her answer now. Kael was the boy in news article, and the one that was in her dreams.

Kael was pale as he realized what he said. He’d just told her that his mother had killed his sister in cold blood. He’d ousted himself now.

Maya didn’t say anything and lowered her hand, taking a deep breathe. He didn’t know that she knew, and that she’d gotten her confirmation about who he was.

“That’s horrible, Kael. That is really horrible. I can’t believe this happened to you, Kael.”

_What was she doing? Did she not know about this case? It was a pretty common one that had been circulating around since it happened. How could she not know?_

“You don’t know anything about this?”

“Not even a little, Kael. I was only seven when this case happened. All I knew was that daddy was on the committee that helping to locate your mother and you. I don’t know much beyond that.”

Kael felt a huge relief come off his shoulders. She still had no idea who he was, that he was the little boy that watched him mom commit murder.

“She killed my sister and ran off with me, trying to escape the cops, so she wouldn’t be arrested.”

Maya knew that wasn’t the whole truth, and had no idea was true and what was a lie. She folded her legs up, staring at him over her knees.

“Why do I get the feeling that I’m not getting the whole truth from you, Kael?”

“That’s the whole truth to it, Maya. That’s all that happened. I was found a few weeks later, with my grandmother, and my mom had taken off. She basically abandoned me. My mother was a whore. But she wasn’t an addict. I never knew my father. He didn’t die over in Iraq. It’s a lie I’ve told for so long that it feels like the truth now. I said it so easily to you that I didn’t think about it twice.”

Maya stared at him, but didn’t say anything else. She still felt like a damn psycho. A psycho who knew how to use a gun to kill.

“I still feel like a psycho.”

“God, what am I going to do with you?! You’re not a psycho, Maya!”

“Yes, I am! I’m a psycho who just took pleasure in killing someone! Don’t tell me that isn’t a fucking psycho, or I’m fucking Madonna!”

“You’re not a psycho!”

“Yes, I am!”

Kael grabbed her wrist, glaring at her. Maya glared back, her mouth set into a hard line. Kael was pissed. She could see it in the hard set of his mouth, and his eyes, too.

Maya tried to yank her wrist free, so she could turn away from him. Being this close to him was melting her resolve and her anger. It was melting her, period.

Kael seemed to have lost his nerve, but didn’t release her. The look in his eyes made Maya shiver, and she licked her lips. Her tongue darted across her lips, and Kael closed his eyes for a moment.

“Don’t do that, Maya. Please don’t, or I might-“

“Why have we stopped?”

Kael and Maya jumped, and he released her. Roxi was awake, and still half asleep. She was rubbing her eyes like a little child who’d just woken up from a nap.

“I needed to sleep. I was falling asleep at the wheel. I didn’t want to cause us to crash. Go back to sleep, Roxi. We’ll be in Philadelphia in a few miles. I’ll wake you when we get to our new hiding quarters.”

“Yes, sir.”

She curled back up in a ball on Kelli’s lap, and Kael started the Impala again, then pulled back out onto the road. He and Maya didn’t speak again for the rest of the ride.

She fell back asleep again an hour or two later, and Kael was grateful that she was asleep. The silence when she was sleeping was better than when she’d been awake and staring out the window.

He’d come that close to losing his self-restraint when Maya had licked her lips. It had caught him off guard for no more than a moment, and he’d lost his nerve then.

Watching her lose her anger like that, and looking so damn tempting, it’d been a lot on him. Kael had wanted to kiss her so badly.

In this moment, he knew he was in love with her. He realized that he’d been in love with her for a long time, even if he hadn’t realized.

All he’d ever wanted was Maya’s love. He knew that he’d give her his love in a heartbeat, but the question on his mind was: did she have the same kind of love he had for her to give to him?

Maya had never seen Kael break down like that before, seen him lose all self-restraint he had in him. It’d been tempting as hell, and seeing him struggling to keep his composure had almost been her undoing.

_I’m in love with Kael_.

She blushed and covered her face at the thought. She hadn’t been asleep, like she wanted Kael to believe. But did he love her?

_Hell, he’s got to. He was practically begging me to stop licking my lip. I didn’t know what he was going to do, but I **wanted** him to._

Maya accepted that he had to be in love with her. He wouldn’t be begging her to stop like that, not if he was going to do something right then and there with Kelli and Roxi in the car.

If Roxi hadn’t woken up then, she was sure as hell that they’d been making out like no tomorrow. Poor child would’ve been scarred, surely. Or confused.

Kael drove past a sign that spewed _Welcome to Philadelphia_ at them. He sighed in relief and continued down 15th street south, keeping his eye out for Sansom Street.

_Aha!_

Kael turned and continued down until he spotted a sign for _Inn at the League_. Grateful that he found it, Kael parked and turned to Maya first, shaking her awake. She groaned and sat up, rubbing her eyes.

“What the fuck, Kael? I was having such a nice dream!”

“We’re here. We should get inside.”

Maya yawned, and unbuckled her seatbelt, turning to Roxi. She gently shook her shoulder, but she refused. Maya shook her harder, frowning.

“What, dammit?”

“We’re at the Inn. Come on, let’s get inside. We’ll have beds instead of the car.”

Roxi groaned, but unbuckled and opened her door, sliding Maya’s suitcase out. Kael had the pleasure of dealing with Kelli and her response to being woken up early.

Kelli groaned, but got out of the Impala anyway. She slung Kael’s duffle bag over her shoulder and flipped the safety off on her Beretta, and held it close to her side, looking around.

“Get Maya and Roxi inside. I’ll be behind you soon.”

Kael ushered both of the girls inside, and held the door open for Kelli. She flipped the safety on and turned as she shoved her Beretta back into her the waistband of her jeans.

“We’re clear.” She whispered, keeping her voice down.

There was no way to be sure if AJ had placed spies in every hotel across the US. He very well could have. It wasn’t a risk they could take.

“Hello, sir, how may I help you?”

“A room with two beds, please.”

“Yes, sir. That’s $125 for the night. You can for another night now or tomorrow before checkout.”

“I’ll have to think about it.”

They didn’t want to stay no more than a day if they had to. Maybe two days otherwise. After that was too risky. AJ could catch up to them.

“Here’s your key, sir, and a copy for anyone else to use. Your room is 265, and that is on the second floor.”

“Thank you.”

Kael didn’t wait for the welcome and headed for the elevator. Maya pressed the up arrow, waiting for it arrive. Kael had his hand on his .40 S&W pistol, and Kelli had hers on her Beretta.

Both were poised to shoot upon any problems.

The doors opened, and they all piled inside. Roxi was the closest to the buttons, and she pressed for the second floor. The elevator jerked, and Maya flinched, grabbing Kael’s hand in her fear.

Maya looked down and felt her chest flutter. Her heart missed a beat, then continued. His fingers intertwined with hers, and Maya struggled to keep her head on straight.

It wasn’t a time to be violently making out with Kael. They had to get upstairs, into their room, and get some actual sleep.

Figuring out their next move could be figured out tomorrow. They all needed rest. If they had their minds clear and not foggy from lack of sleep, then figuring out their next step would be a hell of a lot clearer.

The elevator dinged on their floor, and the door opened. Roxi and Kelli exited first, then Maya and Kael. He was still holding her hand, so he quickly let go.

Kael walked down the hall, looking for their room. After a moment, Maya exclaimed. Kael looked over at her, wondering what in the world she found.

“Kael, I found the room! It’s here at the end.”

Kael walked over to her and swiped the key, which allowed for the door to open. Kelli took guard again with her Beretta, waiting for some sucker to open fire or kidnap Maya.

“We’re in, Kelli. It’s all clear.”

Kelli flicked the safety back on and walked into the room backwards, her hand at ready to grab her Beretta and shoot.

Kael slammed the door and locked it. After a moment, everyone started slipping out of their clothes and into some comfortable clothes.

Kael kept his back to Maya, slipping his arms out of the sleeves and slipped his shirt off, tossing it on top of his duffle bag.

Maya watched him remove his shirt, and shuddered. She continued pulling off her shirt, adverting her eyes. She was having very bad thoughts, and they made her blush scarlet.

_I never expected this development. I never thought that this would happen. He came really close to kissing me. Is it bad that I wanted him to?_

Maya wiggled out of her jeans, and undid her bra, dropping it on top of her clothes. She pulled a tank top on and then scavenged through her bag.

She dug a pair of shorts out and pulled them on, doing up the button and zipper. They hung on her hips, but stayed on. Maya was grateful for that.

“Maya…”

It was Kelli. Maya tilted her head, a bit confused. She thought that Kelli hated her, or at least didn’t like her. She’d put her and Roxi in danger, after all.

“I know that look, and I don’t hate you, Maya. You didn’t know what would happen in Augusta. Hell, none of us did.”

“Why did you come back to help us, then?”

“I figured I owed you. You killed a man to save Roxi. She’d be dead if you hadn’t done something. And I, um, overheard your conversation with Kael.”

Maya felt her cheeks burned, and covered her face. How much, exactly, of their conversation did she hear? Maya didn’t even want to know.

“You’re not a psycho, Maya. I swear. In this world, when someone attacks you, it’s kill or be killed. Blood has to be spilled sometimes, and while it’s an inconvenience, it has to be done.”

Maya felt tears behind her eyes, and she took a shaky breath, trying to not cry. Her dad’s kidnapping had put such a strain on her, one she hadn’t been able to release it, not until the .40 S&W was in her hand, and she felt at home with it.

“You did what had to be done, okay? You had to do it. It was us or them.”

Maya nodded, and smiled. Kelli didn’t hate her at all. In fact, she think she owed her for saving Roxi from certain death.

“Well, I think we’re even now, Kelli.”

Maya bumped Kelli’s hip with hers, and the other girl laughed, slipping her arm over her shoulders. Maya felt she made a new friend in the girl she’d been so jealous of.

Kael got the bed to himself, and he was grateful for that. He wouldn’t be able to sleep next to Maya at all, not after what happened in the Impala.

The temptation would’ve been too much for him.

Maya was asleep on the other bed, her head on Kelli’s stomach. Roxi was asleep on Kelli’s shoulder. All three were sound asleep. They’d kicked the blanket off and were asleep in minutes.

Kael closed his eyes, and was asleep in minutes. He quickly slipped into a nightmare, a nightmare he hadn’t had in a long time.

_“You are a whore! I know you slept with him! I know you slept with John!”_

_“I didn’t sleep with him, you stupid cunt! What the fuck makes you think I did? I wouldn’t touch your nasty ass boyfriend with a fifty foot pole.”_

_Kael woke up to the screaming. Or the screaming woke him up. He wasn’t sure. He just knew that his sister Alexis and his mother were fighting again._

_Kael got up and opened his door, walking down the hall to the living room. His sister Alexis was standing by the arm chair that his mother’s boyfriend sat in. His mother was in the kitchen, and she was red in the face._

_“Don’t you lie to me, you little bitch! Tell me the fucking truth, you slut! Tell me that you slept with him, and this will be over!”_

_“I didn’t sleep with him! He’s nasty and disgusting and there’s no way in hell I’d ever let his dick touch my pussy. I’m not like you.”_

_His mother seemed to swell, and then she grabbed the carving knife, and grabbed Alexis by her hair. She screamed and kicked at her, trying to get mother to let go._

_“I’ll teach you, you little bitch.”_

_Alexis glared at her, and spat in her face._

_Her rage exploded, and the knife stabbed deep into her chest. Alexis gagged. Kael screamed, his little eyes wide. His mother just kept going until his sister stopped moving. And Kael kept screaming, begging his mother to stop…_

Kael gasped and sat up, nearly colliding heads with Maya. Her bright blue eyes showed concerned. A wet washcloth was in her hand, and she pressed the cloth against his forehead.

“You were thrashing in your sleep. It woke me up.”

She continued down his face and neck, wiping the sweat away from his skin. She pressed the cloth into his hand. Kael took it and wiped his chest and arms.

“Kael, are you aware that you’re crying?”

_What?_

Kael touched his face, and realized that his cheeks were wet. He must have been crying in his sleep. He wiped it away quickly, and handed Maya the wash cloth back.

“I’m fine.”

“Kael, you’re not fine. What happened? Was it about your sister?”

Kael flinched, but didn’t say anything. He felt weak, letting it get to him like this. Maya was stronger him, dammit. She was having it rough, yes, but she still smiled like nothing was wrong.

Maya didn’t like that look on his face. She wanted him smiling again. She didn’t like that he was in pain.

Kael’s eyes widened as Maya hugged him, his head pressed against her chest. His heart rate took off, racing like a horse. Her fingers rested in his hair, lightly holding him against her.

Kael could hear Maya’s heart racing, and he felt flustered by this. He inhaled, trying to catch his breath.

_She smells like fresh linen and cinnamon._

It was a weird combination, but it was nice. Kael closed his eyes, and hugged her back. He was stepping into dangerous territory, one he would never be able to come back from if he crossed into it.

But he didn’t care. God, he didn’t.

“I don’t like it when you’re sad, Kael.” She whispered against his hair.

Kael shuddered, and struggled to keep his hands on her waist. He was too far gone, and had been for a long time.

 They sat like that, neither moving until Kelli stirred in the bed and rolled onto her side, muttering something in her sleep. Maya let go first, and they backed away from each other.

“Thank you, Maya. I, um, needed that.”

Kael rubbed the back of his neck, then peeked up at her. She was smiling, and Kael’s heart rate picked up again.

_God, she’s beautiful when she smiles._

“You’re welcome, Kael. We should go back to sleep. It’s gonna be a long morning for us.”

“Yeah, it will be.”

Maya stepped off the bed, and walked back over to the bed the three girls were sharing. She carefully climbed on, so not to wake Kelli and Roxi.

Kael watched her curl up beside Kelli, her black hair settling on her neck. She slipped into sleep easily as he watched, and Kael let the breath he was holding out.

He was glad she was asleep. Kael couldn’t stop thinking about her mouth, her breath against the top of his head. He couldn’t stop thinking about reaching up with his hands and bringing her mouth to his.

_I’m in love with Maya Caparelli. God, I’m in love with her._

He knew it, knew that he was in love with her. He was willing to do anything for her. When had Kael fallen for that smile, fallen for that laugh, that brightness in his dark world?

When had he fallen for her?

Maya awoke when Kelli shook her shoulder. She groaned, and rolled away from her, but Roxi was waiting for her on the other side. She groaned louder and rolled to the middle of the bed, away from them both.

“Maya, you can’t sleep in. We’ve got to figure out our next move. Get up. Kael’s making breakfast.”

_Kael’s making breakfast!_

Maya licked her lips and sat up, stretching. She yawned loudly, and then rubbed her eyes. Maya climbed off the bed, and walked to the dining room.

“I hope he’s making coffee, too.”

“Yes, Maya, he is.”

“Good, because I’m tired as hell.”

Maya found a chair and plopped down into it, laying her head on the table. Kelli sat down in front of her, and Roxi sat down at the opposite end of the table.

“Feel better, Maya?”

“I’m tired. Really tired. I haven’t been able to sleep properly in two weeks since this all started.”

Kelli, reached across the table and ran her hand down Maya’s short hair. Maya closed her eyes, thinking of her mother when she would lay her head in her mother’s lap, and she would brush Maya’s hair with her fingers until she fell asleep.

It felt nice.

“I never did ask, Maya, but you’ve never said anything about your mother.”

Maya flinched, and gripped the table cloth under her hands. She didn’t want to say anything. She really didn’t want to.

“She’s… She’s dead. My mother had breast cancer and she was in such pain, so she stole some diabetic medication and overdosed.”

Kelli’s eyes widened, and she leaned back in her chair, covering her mouth. Maya waited for the “I’m sorry” and “I didn’t know”.

“I know I’m sorry won’t do anything for you, but god, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know and I shouldn’t have asked. It was so wrong of me to ask you about her.”

“Kelli, it’s okay. Someone told me I needed to let go of the past, to stop being angry with her for doing that to me, to my dad.”

Kael stopped mixing, listening to the conversation outside the kitchen. Kael smiled to himself, glad she was taking his advice.

She was trying to let go of what her mother did, the anger and the pain. It was the only way she would heal.

If only Kael would take his own advice.

He sighed and resumed mixing the eggs together, breaking the egg yolks up so he could make some scrambled eggs. Kelli had gone out this morning and got some food this morning while he stood watch.

Kael poured the eggs into a frying pan, and waited for them to fluff up a bit. As he waited, Kael prepared a cup of coffee for Maya. He poured some chocolate creamer into it, and two spoons full of sugar. Just the way she liked her coffee, if he recalled correctly from the last time.

“Maya, here.”

Maya peeked as Kael set the cup down. She inhaled and sat up, taking the cup in her hands. She blew on it, trying to cool it down slightly, and took a sip.

“Mmmm…”

Maya closed her eyes as the coffee woke her up a little more. Coffee never tasted as good as when a person was sleep deprived.

“What are we having for breakfast?”

“Scrambled eggs and bacon.”

Maya nodded, and took another sip of her coffee, relishing the caffeine that woke her mind up more. Maya rarely, if ever, drank coffee, but the last two weeks had been tough.

Kael used the spatula to fold the eggs over, and then began a quick dicing motion to scramble the eggs. After a few minutes of doing this, Kael turned the stovetop off and picked the pan up, scooping the eggs into a bowl.

He’d made the bacon already, and had it in a container to keep it warm. He washed the pan and spatula, then grabbed a spoon to scoop the eggs out.

“Roxi, can you grab some plates and forks? My hands are full.”

“Okay.”

Roxi disappeared around behind Maya and into the kitchen. Some cabinets and drawers opened, and a moment later, right behind Kael, Roxi appeared with four plates and forks.

“Here you go, Maya.”

Roxi held a plate and fork out to her, and she accepted them. Maya set them down, and reached for the spoon in the eggs, scooping some onto her plate.

She grabbed some bacon and then dug in, shoving a forkful of eggs into her mouth. Kelli chuckled and took a bite of her bacon, chewing thoughtfully.

“You’ve got an appetite, Maya.”

“I run track. I burn a lot of energy off, so I eat huge amounts of food.” Maya said, tearing off a bit of bacon and chewing.

“I used to play basketball in school. That was until I blew out my knee and tore my ACL. I shredded it to pieces when I blew my knee out.”

“That sucks. I know a girl who tore her ACL to pieces. She couldn’t run track ever again.”

Roxi bit into her bacon, chewing. The girls fell into silence again, eating their food. Kael scooped some more eggs onto his plate and drizzled ketchup over it.

“It’s too quiet.” Roxi muttered, shoving some scrambled eggs into her mouth.

“I guess we could ask each other questions. Or ask about embarrassing events in our life.”

“I’m gonna ask Maya first, then. Maya, have your ever done anything that was illegal?”

Maya swallowed and pursed her lips. She did do something, but she wasn’t sure if she could tell the whole story about it. It was quite the adventure.

“Okay, I got a tattoo done illegally a year ago. My dad still doesn’t know. I’ve got it where my swim suit would cover it and my dad would never know.”

“What is it of?”

Maya’s face flushed and she rubbed her earlobe between her forefinger and thumb. Kelli smirked and leaned forward on her elbows.

“What is it, Maya? It can’t be that bad.”

“Um, I’m not sure of that. You might laugh at me.”

“Oh, I won’t. Come on.”

“Fine, it’s a panda.”

“A panda?! You got a panda tattooed on you?!”

Maya stood up and turned around, rolling her shirt up. She then pulled the edge of her pj bottoms down. Maya pursed her lips, her face hot. When she’d shown Kael two weeks ago, she hadn’t been this embarrassed. Now that she felt the way she did, she was embarrassed about doing this.

“I kind of lied about how the tattoo was done. I did get it done illegally, that’s the truth. I was drunk and my friends insisted on getting tattoos. So, I got one of a panda. I’m glad I got it somewhere that my dad wouldn’t see. He’d be livid.”

“Hey, Kael, remember that time we snuck off the academy grounds with Amelie? The one with the tattoos?”

“Ugh, that one. I had to get that damn tattoo covered up with something different. It’s _your_ fault, after all.”

“You should know better by now not to listen to me when I’m stupid drunk on vodka. You were drunk, too, but common sense would’ve told you not to agree to it.”

Maya peeked at Kael, curiosity lined over her face. Kael didn’t really want to tell her what the tattoo was, because it was the stupidest tattoo he’d ever gotten.

“What was it?”

“Yeah, what was it, Kael?”

He glared at Kelli before letting out his breath, and set down his silverware, pinching the bridge of his nose. He hated Kelli right this minute.

“It was a Pooh Bear tattoo.” He mumbled.

Maya choked on her water, and coughed for a few minutes. Roxi got up and rubbed her back as she regained her breath.

“A Pooh Bear tattoo? God, you must have been severally hammered, Kael, to have listened to Kelli at all. A Pooh Bear tattoo?”

“I may had one of the most horrible tattoo ideas in history, but at least I didn’t let one of my drunk friends _tattoo_ me herself!”

Kelli paled considerably, and set down her fork. Maya and Roxi looked between them, feeling the tension rise incredibly. It was so thick that she could’ve cut it with a knife.

“Oh, you seedy bastard. I was drunk, and-“

“So was I, and I had mine done _by a professional_. You let Amelie put a tattoo on you, who was drunk _and_ high.”

“Okay, it wasn’t my proudest moment-“

“She tattooed a _penis_ on you, for gods’ sake!”

Roxi choked on her bacon and swallowed it in her haste, coughing. Maya snorted and squirted water out her nose and over the table.

“You got a dick tattoo on you, Kelli. Of all the people I thought would’ve made bad decisions, with me included, I would’ve never thought you.”

“I got it removed, and it’s gone.”

“Yeah, at the cost of your budget for the month at the academy. You were mooching off me for the rest of the month until you got your budget next month.”

“Oh, shut up.”

“You still owe me, by the way, for that.”

“ _Shut up_!”

The table fell silent again, and the group finished eating. Kael got the map as the girls cleared the table. Roxi offered to wash the dishes.

Maya and Kael laid the map down on the table, and Maya placed a stone on Philadelphia. Kelli joined them at the table, and Roxi dried a plate by the doorway of the kitchen.

“It’s obvious we can’t stay in hotels anymore. We need somewhere that is out of the way, and not listed in any records anywhere and cannot be discovered by AJ or the people he works with.”

Maya stared down at the map, and traced a circle around Philadelphia, trying to think. She remembered something about these woods.

“Ah! I knew I remembered something about this area.”

“What is it, Maya?”

“My dad’s brother had a cabin out in these woods. He always had it set that, if he was to go suddenly, the cabin was to go to me. But he had a stipulation that I wouldn’t get it until I was eighteen. But my dad used it when we needed a break from work and school. Can I have a marker?”

Kael handed her a marker, and Maya moved the stone, starting the tracing at Philadelphia and along the I-76. She continued along that line to the Ohio Turnpike, then to I-80. That interstate continued until she hit the I-90, and then she was back on the Ohio Turnpike. The line continued and hit the I-90 again, then back to the Ohio Turnpike. It hit the I-80 again and hit the I-90 a few miles later. Her line crossed over the Indian Toll Road, and continued back onto the I-80. A few miles later, her marker went back over the I-90 and then back over the Indian Toll Road. That road switched back to I-80, and back to the I-90 a few miles later. I-90 switched to I-65 and switched to the I-94 a few miles after that.

That continued for a miles, and Maya’s marker found the I-294, continuing to the I-290, and then back onto I-90. She continued down the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway on the I-90. Maya continued up to where the I-94 split and kept to the right until she reached Hatcher Pass Road in Alaska.

“Damn, Maya, that’s 4,317 miles and 73 hours of traffic. It is 70 hours if there is no traffic and we are really lucky.”

She placed the cap back on the marker, and set it down on the map. Her blue eyes darted to his, and they were hard. Maya crossed her arms, leaning to the right.

“We don’t have much of a choice, Kael. We can’t stay at the safe houses anymore, and motels are too dangerous with AJ following us. Plus, it’s listed on as my inheritance, and the only person who can see that is my lawyer. And he’s away in Hawaii on vacation with his fiancée. I know it’s over a three day drive, but what choice do we have?”

“She’s right, Kael. The safe houses are useless, and motels are useless if AJ can find us no matter where we go.”

Kael sighed and turned from the girls for a moment. This was a long trip, three days max at the most. They would be on the road for a while.

“Fine, but I have a few stipulations. One is that we leave right now. The sooner we leave, the more road we cover. Two is that Kelli and I switch to drive. And three is that we try to stop as little as we can.”

“But I can drive, Kael-“

“It’s best that you don’t, Maya. One, your wallet is back in Tampa in the hands of the FBI office down there. Two, if we get pulled over, it could land us in a lot of trouble. It’s better if I drive, so that way I can avoid the police.”

Maya sighed and then nodded. She was in agreement with him. It was too dangerous to have her drive. Without her license, she could get pulled over and arrested when she can’t give them her license.

Too many things could go wrong. At least with Kael, he could figure his way out of the situation quickly.

“Fine. I won’t drive. We should go, and quickly. I still have no clue if I even hit AJ or not. I want to believe I did, but since I don’t know, I’m not holding my breath.”

“I know. Alright, we should get going. The more time we have, the more road we can eat up in the Impala.”

“Come on, Roxi, let’s get our bags.”

“You, too, Maya.”

AJ groaned, rolling over in the dirt. His shoulder stung terribly, and warm sticky blood oozed out of the bullet wound in his shoulder.

He felt around in the dark until he found his flashlight and clicked it on. The light flickered for a moment, and then held. AJ swung it around, looking for the truck he and Allah Dalrubai was in. He found it in the ditch a few feet in front of him.

“Shit. Allah Dalrubai, are you alive? What the hell happened?”

AJ went to his knees, looking in the car. Allah Dalrubai was there, alright, but he was dead, his neck snapped. It must have happened in the crash.

He busted the window in the back out and reached in, unlocking the back door to the truck. AJ pulled it open and yanked his bag out, swinging it over his uninjured shoulder.

He still had his burner on him, and would call his boss as soon as he could. First, he had to get his shoulder dealt with. There was a RGI headquarters a few miles from here, in Philadelphia.

“I’m coming for you, Maya. I promise that I’ll get my revenge.”

_Even if it’s the last thing he did._


	7. Chapter 7

( **Forty seven hours later** )

Kael leaned against the Impala, pulling his hat down low over his eyes as he pumped the gas. Maya and the girls were inside the gas station, grabbing some supplies they would need to hole up in Maya’s cabin in Hatcher Pass.

It’s been almost two days since they left Philadelphia. They have managed to avoid the cops so far, which is a great relief.

Kael drove over the border that separated Minnesota and North Dakota at four thirty this morning. The Impala had been about a quarter from hitting empty, so he spent a half hour driving until he found a gas station.

The gas stopped, and Kael removed the pump from the car. He closed the gas cover and replaced the pump back into its holder.

They still had 2,581 miles to go before they reached Hatcher Pass Road from their current location of Tioga, North Dakota. Another day, at least. Traffic has been pretty reasonable since they left Philadelphia. But Kael wasn’t going to hold his breath. Not until they got out of North Dakota and across the border.

There was a place that they could drive across the border without being stopped, and it was right on their route. It was perfect for them, since they could easily sneak in and out of the country when needed.

This was a time of desperate need.

Maya, Kelli and Roxi exited the gas station a moment later. Kelli had cut her hair into a pixie cut, courtesy of Roxi, and dyed it blonde. Roxi’s hair had been growing out, so she decided to dye her hair black and curl the locks.

Kael unlocked the trunk and the girls piled in the supplies they needed to get them through a month at the cabin. That’d be enough time for Director Banks to catch AJ and bring him in before he can do something worse.

He locked the trunk and tossed Kelli the keys. She caught them and walked around to the driver’s side of the Impala, and Kael climbed into the back seat.

Maya joined him in the back and buckled up. Kael had cut it short enough that no one recognize her, but long enough that she could put it up.

A lock was hanging by her cheek, and Kael reached over, tucking it behind her ear. Maya’s cheek flushed scarlet, and her blue eyes flickered toward him.

Kael knew he was overstepping his boundaries, and that he was overstepping the guidelines that kept their charges safe and sound.

Maya could feel the heat on her cheeks. She’d felt his fingers brush her skin as he tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. And she felt every sensation she’d been trying to keep on a simmer boil over.

Maya averted her eyes and turned to the window, keeping her gaze outside the car. She could see her reflection in the window, and how red she was.

_Damn that boy for making me all flustered like this._

Maya closed her eyes, shutting her blushing face out in the meantime. She couldn’t wait to get to the cabin. It’d been a long time since she and her father had stepped inside it.

It would be covered in dust, and she would most likely have to dust. The place possibly needed airing out, too. No one has opened the doors a long time.

Maya knew where the key was to get inside. Maya knew more about the cabin then the others, and knew where everything was. Her uncle had been insistent that she visit every summer and spend it with him.

He took her fishing and on nature walks. They picked his summer fruit from the garden behind his cabin and made dinner together. And they would sit out on the porch and watch the fireflies and bats fly about.

That had been her childhood. A small sliver of time it was, anyway. And then her uncle came down with a bad case of walking ammonia that caused his asthma to act up.

He died because his lungs couldn’t breathe for him.

And thus, Maya lost her sliver of childhood. Just like that, so quick and easy, just like her mother. She didn’t think anything could hurt like her mother’s death, but her uncle’s death had.

Her uncle’s death didn’t have the effect her mother’s had, which still hurt Maya to this day. But she was trying to let go, little by little, step by step.

Kael took a well-deserved nap. He’d been driving all night, and was dead on his feet. Once Kelli had given him the keys last night, he’d had his foot on the gas, trying not to speed but determined as hell to cover some miles before the switched in the morning.

It had drained him to the point he could barely stand.

Kael was asleep, which Maya felt was a relief. Kael was an amazing person, but thinking about him and her and her feelings, it was too much. She’d catch him staring on the rare occasion, and she would lick or bite her lip, which caused him to blush and look away from her.

She liked the attention of a boy. Maya was pretty, but one word about her dad being an FBI agent, and poof! They were gone, quick as the wind, on to the next girl like she didn’t existed.

With Kael, it was different. He didn’t freak because her dad was an FBI agent. Kael was on his way to becoming an agent. He wasn’t afraid of her father at all.

Now if only he would open his damn mouth and tell her his feelings.

_Maya, I’m in love with you._

Was that so damn hard for Kael to say? He didn’t know how to phrase it without it coming off wrong or otherwise. He didn’t want to ask Kelli how, because she would never let him hear the end of it.

But what choice did he have?

Maya awoke when the Impala stopped. Groaning, she sat up, rubbing her eyes. She stretched and cracked her back. Sleeping in a car was uncomfortable as hell. Hopefully they were almost there.

“Where are we?”

“Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. We’re almost there.”

Kael, who was awake next to Maya, had the map in his hands and was examining it. His traced his finger from Edmonton to Hatcher Pass Road.

“We have 3,088 km till we reach Hatcher Pass Road. And then we’ll be at the cabin and safe for the time being.”

“Awesome, but I am tired. I’m seeing doubles right now, Kael. Come trade with me.”

Kelli had parked the car already, so the two got out and traded the keys. Kael climbed into the driver door and started the car.

Roxi was still asleep, curled up in the passenger seat. Kael stuck the key in and turned the Impala on. He pulled off the side of the road and continued the drive as dawn crested the horizon.

( **Sixty-nine hours** )

Kael was tired, but he kept going, hoping for them to get to the cabin before dawn. They had a few more hours before they reached Hatcher Pass.

Kael had crossed into Yukon Territory three hours ago. It was dark, and the headlights were the only things that illuminated the road.

_I should stop. I need to sleep._

Kael pulled off to the side of the road and parked. He unbuckled and turned in his seat, reaching back to shake Kelli’s shoulder. She groaned and turned away from him.

“Kelli, wake up. I’ve been driving all night, and I can’t keep my eyes open. We need to switch.”

Kelli groaned and sat up, rubbing her eyes. Kael got out, and hand the keys to Kelli, who took them in earnest from him. Kelli got in the front seat as Kael got in the back next to Maya and closed his eyes, yawning.

Kelli started the car and pulled onto the road, continuing down. Kael closed his eyes and went to sleep, his forehead pressed against the cool window.

( **Seventy-two hours** )

Maya opened her eyes, stretching her arms as far as she could in the Impala. Sunlight came through the window, and Maya squinted for a moment, trying to adjust to the sudden brightness.

“Are you gonna come out or what, Maya? We’re here.”

Roxi stood in front of the door, blocking out the sun. Maya nodded and motioned for the younger girl to back away, then swung the door open.

Her uncle’s cabin stood tall, and Maya smiled. Her memories of the wrap around porch and cooking fish in the kitchen made her happy, if only for a moment.

“It’s been a while since anyone’s been here, so the place may need to be dusted. I think dad stocked it with food last month, but didn’t bother dusting.”

Maya shook her head, her hands on her hips.

“I wonder how he’d managed without me around to remind him of things that weren’t in his calendar.”

She retrieved her luggage and climbed up the steps to the front door. Maya set her bag down, and then felt along the edges of the doorframe.

“What are you doing?”

“Hold on…”

Maya felt the small button under her finger and pressed down. She stepped back, and an automatic voice came from above the door.

“Name?”

“Maya Elizabeth Caparelli.”

A loud ding echoed, and the voice returned, spewing another question at Maya.

“Father’s name?”

“Alexander Caparelli.”

_Ding_.

“Date of Birth?”

“December 19th, 1998.”

_Ding_.

A whir sound at the space by Maya’s waist, and a monitor slinked out, the screen with two thick lines, one running left to right and one running up and down.

“Scan your thumb.”

Maya pressed her left thumb against the screen and patiently waited for it to finish scanning her thumbprint. It whirred and whirred before making that dinging noise again.

“Identity confirmed as Maya Caparelli, daughter of Alexander Caparelli and niece of Jameson Caparelli.”

The door popped open with an audible click, and Maya turned slightly, smiling. The other’s mouths were opened in a jaws dropped kind of fashion.

“My uncle was very protective of his privacy. I’ll add you guys into the system later, so if you leave the cabin I won’t have to let you in repeatedly. Come on.”

She picked her luggage up and walked inside. The other girls followed suit, and Kael parked the Impala in the garage. He shut the door and followed them inside, shutting the door behind them.

“Holy hell.”

The cabin was huge. The living had a fireplace, and above it was a flat screen TV. A bear skin rug sat in front of the fireplace. The couch and loveseat were a pale grey color.

French doors opened the living room to the outside, and it was bright. The kitchen was to the left, and a winding staircase to the second floor was to the right of the kitchen.

“Maya, this is…”

“Incredible? Yeah. A lot of people say that. My uncle saw it that way, too. It was his home away from home. Hatcher Pass is a long way from Tampa, but he flew me out every summer, so it wasn’t so bad.”

Kelli gaped at the room, turning slowly in a 360. Roxi was admiring the records in a box by the record player. Kael was in the kitchen, running his fingers over the equipment.

“Wait, the security system said you were the niece of Jameson Caparelli. I swear I know that name.”

Maya bit her lip for a moment and sighed, collapsing on the couch there, running her fingers through her short black hair.

“I’m sure you do, Roxi. He often went by Jamie to his fans and Caper during his shows. My uncle was very talented man, and a loving one, too.”

Roxi dropped the record she was holding, and seemed to be having an internal freak out. Maya tilted her head at her, wondering if she was alright.

“Your uncle is Caper of _Rob the Night_?!”

“Yes, Roxi. My uncle **was** the lead singer of _Rob the Night_.”

Kelli sat down on the couch, her hands clasped together. Maya figured she was a fan, too, considering that Kelli isn’t that much older than her.

“Oh, God, I heard about that. He swerved to avoid a child in the road and crashed. It was such a horrible accident. He wrapped himself around a tree and-“

“And he was later announced as dead at scene. His head cracked the steering wheel, and it burst an unknown aneurysm in his frontal lobe. If anything, he died quickly and didn’t suffer.”

No one spoke after this revelation. Maya kept her head down, and checked her nails. They were chipped and dirty. She needed a good once over after this was all over and done with.

“I was able to enjoy him when he was around, and that’s all that matters. I still see my cousin Andrea and Aunt Isabel on the rare occasion.”

“Your uncle was married?”

“Yeah. Isabel was six months pregnant when he passed. Andrea is about three years younger than me. She’s your age, Roxi.”

“Cool.”

Maya stood and stretched, heading for the hallway. She returned a few moments later with a mop, broom, and other cleaning supplies.

“I can feel the dust in my nose, so let’s get this place clean. Kael, you can clean the kitchen. Can you check the food in the fridge and make sure it’s not spoiled or expired?”

“Sure.”

“Kelli, can you do the living room and the hallways?”

“Yeah.”

“Roxi, dear, can you clean all the rooms on this floor?”

“Of course.”

“I’ll take the second floor and clean that. Then we can claim rooms for ourselves, and decide, based on Kael’s observations, whether we need to make another run to the store for things we might have missed.”

Everyone was in agreement, and so they set off to clean her uncle’s cabin. Maya headed upstairs, carrying her set of cleaning supplies by her side.

( **Four hours later** )

Maya collapsed onto the love seat downstairs, groaning loudly. Her whole body ached from the massive cleanup she’d down upstairs.

There had been cobwebs everywhere, and lots of dust. She was covered in sweat and desperately wanted a shower. She hated feeling sticky with sweat.

“Maya, you’ve got dirt on your forehead.”

_Great. Absolutely fabulous._

“I’ll take a shower in a minute. Let’s hear the results of the kitchen.”

“Well, most of the food was expired. But some of it doesn’t expire until late December, early January. So that’ll do for right now, and then we have the other food we brought as well. So I think we’re good for right now.”

“Okay. I think we should go look at what rooms are available. And then everyone can shower in their respective rooms, since each room has its own bathroom off of it.”

Maya grabbed her suitcase and joined the others to go upstairs, leading the way up. She plopped her bag down on the center, holding the handle between her hands.

“There are five rooms up here. Four are bedrooms, and the last one is my uncle’s office. That room is locked, and hasn’t been opened since his death. I…I haven’t cleaned in there yet. And I’m not sure if I want to.”

Roxi dropped her bag on the floor, and pursed her lips, her arms crossed around her waist. Maya took a deep breath and pointed out the four bedrooms.

“These are the rooms. One room used to belong to my cousin Andrea, and another was for my aunt and uncle. I’ll be taking the one that was my aunt and uncle’s room. So it’s up to you what rooms you want.”

They look between each other and then came together to discuss it quietly among themselves. Maya picked her bag up, and walked into her uncle’s room, shutting the door behind her.

Sunlight filtered through the window, and the room smelled faintly of cologne. She placed her bag down, walking to the closet and turning the light on.

Her uncle’s shirts were still in the closet. Isabel had wanted them to remain where they were. She wanted him to stay in this house, not because of the need to forget him, but the need to want to remember him as he was.

The cabin was where he was himself the most. He wasn’t a rockstar here, but a future father. He wasn’t a talented man with only his fans, but a man with a beautiful wife, his unborn child, and his niece.

This was his home, and it should stay that way.

Maya walked into the closet, and pushed some of the shirts back. One shirt stood out among them. It was her uncle’s band shirt. He only wore it when he was on tour.

She pulled it off the hanger gently, and held it in her hands. He could never wear this on tour again. The shirt wouldn’t catch his sweat and blood from his hard work.

_It’d never been with him again_.

Maya crushed it lightly in her hands, and buried it in her face, sobbing into it. She cried into it until she couldn’t anymore, and then she put the shirt back on the hanger.

Her uncle’s death had hurt, yes, but it was less traumatic then her mother’s death. Maya liked thinking about it better. She preferred the tears over the anger.

Maya left the closet, turning off the light. She had to unpack, since they were going to be here a month, maybe more. It all depends if they can get through the month without a problem.

She left her room and walked down the hall. Her uncle’s former office door loomed in front of her. She swallowed, feeling it click with the effort.

Maya wasn’t sure if she could face her uncle’s former office, but she had to. If she wanted to ensure the people living in this house access, she had to enter that room.

Maya pressed a panel in the wall, and a palm scanner slid out of the wall. Maya pressed her hand against it and waited, chewing her bottom lip.

“Recognized.”

The door opened with a click, and Maya grabbed the handle. She opened it and walked in quickly, shutting the door behind her.

The office was spotless. There wasn’t a single speck of dust and different lyric sheets laid on the desk. It was like her uncle hadn’t been gone for ten years.

Isabel must have done this. She must have been out here before they arrived. That had to be it. Absolutely nothing suspicions about it.

Maya took a seat at her uncle’s old desk, running her fingers over the wood. There were grooves in the wood from his pen scribbling on his music sheets.

Her fingers ran over the leather arm rests, remembering the times she sat in her uncle’s lap as he wrote music, singing out the words with the sound, scribbling out words that didn’t fit, or adding words where needed.

His small glass, which he sometimes drank scotch from when he was having trouble with a song, nursing a cup until it hit him, and he would resume his writing, leaving his glass alone.

Maya pulled herself closer to the desk and turned the computer on, waiting for the log on screen to come up. After a moment, the screen came up and Maya typed in her uncle’s password.

She choked a little when the desktop came up. It had a picture of her, her uncle, her aunt, and her cousin Andrea. She felt the tears go down her cheeks.

_I wonder if the scotch bottle is still in the right drawer here…_

Maya opened the drawer, drying her cheeks with her shirt sleeve. A bottle of dark brown liquid sloshed around in the drawer. She pulled the bottle out, and set it down on the desk.

Her uncle had a mini fridge and freezer in his office, since he would get stuck in here for days usually. Maya got some ice from the freezer, and carried it over, dropping the cubes into the glass.

She sat back down and unscrewed the cap, pouring some scotch over the ice until the glass was a quarter full. She screwed the cap back on and placed the bottle back in the drawer.

Maya took a swig, closing her eyes as the liquid slide down her throat. Alcohol was her best friend some days. It allowed her a reprieve from her demons.

She doubled clicked on the security system, and went into the ‘add to’ section. She typed in Kael’s name and then used the scanner to run his thumbprint through. She also set his to ‘name’ and ‘thumbprint’ only, as Maya did not know Kael’s birthday or his father’s name.

She inputted the others in the same fashion and under the same settings as Kael. She clicked _save all_ and a box popped up saying _saved successfully_.

Maya closed out of the application and logged the computer off. She stood, and downed the rest of her scotch.

“I miss you.” She whispered to an empty room.

Maya shut the door, and scanned her palm again, locking the door. She let out a breathy sigh once the door was locked. She’d done it.

Maya had stepped into the last place her uncle had been before his death. Sure, she down a glass of scotch during her time in there, but she did it.

Maya headed back into her room, and shut the door softly. Her hands moved on their own, and she pulled off her shirt, tossing it into the hamper by the closet.

She moved systematically through each clothing, down to her underwear. Maya walked into the closet and pulled off one of her uncle’s button up shirts. She pulled it on and did up the buttons.

Maya pulled the blanket back and climbed into the bed. The sheets smelled of fresh linen, and she curled up in them, falling into a deep sleep.

( **Three am** )

Kael groaned loudly, hearing the loud rock music playing. He threw off the blanket, and climbed out of bed, rubbing his eyes.

_Why is there music at three in the morning?_

Kael opened the door to his room and walked out to the railing. He looked over it, but couldn’t see anyone. He could hear the music better now.

It was _Uma Thurman_ by fall out Boy.

Kael walked around the edge of the railing and headed downstairs, taking the steps slowly and quietly. He wasn’t sure who would be up this early in the morning, but he wasn’t taking any chances.

He reached around to the waistband of his pj bottoms, and grasped at nothing.

_Fuck_.

Kael forgot his weapon upstairs. It was sitting on the dresser, safety on and loaded with bullets. He swore under his breath, pissed at himself for forgetting his gun.

He sidestepped the squeaky step near the bottom, and edge his way around the side of the stairs to the living room, where the source of the music was coming from.

Kael peeked around and felt his heart slam in his chest at the sight before him.

“Maya?”


End file.
